Japan’s Kumamoto prefectural government announced on Saturday, August 1st, 2026, that it has ended rescue operations at an Aeon shopping centre in Kashima. The decision follows an explosion that killed seven workers shortly after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck southwestern Japan four days earlier.

Officials stated that after thorough searches conducted by local police, firefighters, and the Self-Defence Forces, there are no more people unaccounted for at the site. The shopping centre’s second floor collapsed in what is believed to be a gas explosion after approximately 200 people had been evacuated following the earthquake on Tuesday afternoon.

The earthquake caused widespread damage across Kumamoto prefecture, with more than 9,000 people evacuated and 3,429 houses damaged, including 181 destroyed. The tremor registered the maximum intensity of 7 on the Japanese seismic scale in the cities of Uki and Hikawa.

The death toll from the quake has risen to at least 36 across the prefecture, including those killed at the shopping centre, with 11 people seriously injured. Efforts to restore essential infrastructure continue, although around 69,400 households remain without water amid scorching heat.

Many evacuees are currently staying in their cars with air conditioning running, facing petrol shortages and long queues at gas stations. In response, the central government has requested petroleum wholesalers to increase deliveries to Kumamoto, with supplies expected to reach four times the usual level.

Sources