Japan Earthquake

At least nine people have died after a powerful earthquake hit southern Japan, toppling buildings and cutting power supplies.

09:53 15 April 2016

An earthquake with magnitude 7.0 occurred near Kumamoto, Kyushu, Japan killing at least 19 people and injuring at least 250 other individuals. Officials say that more people could be trapped under collapsed buildings and that rescue operations are being disrupted by aftershocks. They added that the nuclear reactors on the island have not been affected.

 

Hironobu Kosaki, a local police official, said: "The shaking was so violent I couldn't stand still,"

 

Yasuhiro Soshino, of the Japanese Red Cross Kumamoto Hospital, confirmed on Friday that they received 254 injured people with 15 of them in critical condition.

 

"Red Cross medical teams in other areas are also gathering at our Red Cross hospital," he said.

 

About 16,000 homes were left without electricity and 38,000 without gas. Mashiki, where the shaking was most severe, was left with at least two dead people with many collapsed houses and walls. Residents also said that their water supply had been cut off. Some train services were also suspended as a precautionary measure.

 

BBC’s Japan correspondent Rupert Wingfield-Hayes said that the earthquake occurred at a time when most people were at home.