Japan's response to the deadly Kumamoto earthquake entered a difficult recovery phase on Monday as extreme heat and disrupted water supplies threatened thousands of displaced residents. Prefectural officials said 38 people died and 114 were injured after the magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the southwestern island of Kyushu on July 28, while Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made her first visit to the affected area.
More than 8,500 people remained in emergency shelters set up in community centers, school gyms and classrooms, according to authorities cited by the Associated Press. Many facilities lacked air conditioning, sanitation, privacy or reliable medical support. Other residents slept in cars, parks or outside damaged homes, increasing concern about heat illness as the Japan Meteorological Agency forecast temperatures near 40 degrees Celsius on Monday.
The infrastructure toll continued to shape the emergency. More than 46,000 households lacked running water, fuel was scarce in several communities, about 700 homes had been destroyed and over 11,300 buildings sustained damage, Kumamoto authorities reported. Residents placed broken furniture and appliances outside for collection, while Uki and Hikawa began building temporary housing and some hotels and inns offered rooms to evacuees.
Takaichi surveyed the disaster zone from a military helicopter and visited an equipped shelter with air conditioning, partitions and cardboard beds. Kumamoto Governor Takashi Kimura told her that abnormal heat was worsening already severe conditions and requested further national assistance for shelters without clean water and medical care. The prime minister said the government would quickly examine additional support and act proactively.
The disaster also renewed scrutiny of an explosion at a partially collapsed shopping mall in Kashima. The operator said a gas leak was believed to have caused the blast after about 3,000 shoppers had evacuated, although some employees remained inside. Rescuers recovered five survivors and seven bodies there. A shop operator acknowledged instructing two employees who later died to return to secure sales proceeds if it was possible.
Recovery priorities now include restoring water and fuel, reducing crowding, preventing heat-related deaths and moving displaced families into safer accommodation. Authorities are also assessing buildings and investigating the mall explosion. The combination of seismic damage and dangerous summer temperatures means the humanitarian risk continues even after the immediate search-and-rescue phase has eased.
Comments