At least 28 people died due to the magnitude 7.1 earthquake on the open Richter scale, which shook the Kumamoto prefecture on the Japanese island of Kyushu this Tuesday.
The figure was announced this Thursday by the government spokesperson Minoru Kihara, according to information collected by the NHK television network regarding the mentioned earthquake, which was followed by another of magnitude 6.1 in the same area.
Some of the fatalities were in the AEON shopping center in the city of Kashima, which collapsed and where an explosion occurred just after the tremor.
Others who died were in a paper factory in the city of Yatsushiro, where several chimneys suffered severe damage, according to Kumamoto prefecture as reported by the Kyodo news agency.
It added that, so far, “more than 10,000 people” remain in evacuation centers.
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On Wednesday, the Japanese Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, pledged to accelerate the disbursement of urgent aid to those affected by the earthquake, following an emergency management meeting.
Regarding the most basic aid, Takaichi explained that her administration practices so-called “proactive aid,” which is sending support to the area preventively and before the affected communities have requested it.
Specifically, as detailed, the Japanese government is focusing on sending food, water, toilet paper, and electric vehicles to the localities hit by the tremor.
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