Mag 6.8 Earthquake, 5 km E of Uto, Kumamoto Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan

[Astronuc]

M 6.8 - 5 km E of Uto, Japan​

https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us6000tgb9/executive

• 2026-07-28 07:27:15 (UTC)
• 32.682°N 130.722°E
• 10.0 km depth

Relatively shallow and on land resulting in structural failure of buildings and at least one bridge.

Powerful quake hits southern Japan, deaths feared in shopping mall explosion
https://www.reuters.com/business/en...its-japans-kyushu-region-jma-says-2026-07-28/

Japan registers magnitude 7.1 earthquake, evacuation issued for 150,000 people amid blackout
https://www.jpost.com/environment-and-climate-change/article-903876
"The Japanese government issued emergency earthquake warnings for Kumamoto, Nagasaki, Kagoshima, Fukuoka, Saga, Oita, and Miyazaki prefectures, all on Japan's southern Kyushu island."

Many trapped in collapsed shopping mall after Japan earthquake
https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/28/world/live-news/japan-earthquake-kumamoto

• Earthquake hits: Many people are trapped, NHK reports, after a shopping mall partially collapsed after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake hit Japan’s southern Kumamoto prefecture, causing a highway bridge to buckle, and at least one other building to collapse.

A magnitude 7.1 earthquake shakes part of southern Japan but no tsunami detected
https://apnews.com/article/japan-earthquake-tsunami-09e6f40acbcc96053946c9c104e7a242

The earthquake has been reported as 7.1 Mag in Japan; "The U.S. Geological Survey initially said the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1, but revised it later to 6.8."

Attached map shows locations of the Mag 6.8 (uppermost) and 4 aftershocks along a fault zone. It looks like Uto, Uki and the other towns affected a built on a relatively flat area of alluvial deposits. Such soft ground (as opposed to rock) can amplify seismic waves and the ground may become unstable.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

I heard about the people trapped in the mall. Terrifying.

 

[Astronuc]

I heard about the people trapped in the mall. Terrifying.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgewg24qgnjo

The quake's epicentre was about 20km (12 miles) south of Kumamoto, which is Kyushu island's largest city with a population of about 700,000.

"We are still assessing the extent of injuries and property damage, but I have been informed that there have already been several injuries," Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Tuesday.

Footage of the shopping centre shows white smoke rising from the building, as people run into the carpark. Large parts of the mall's exterior have been blown off, exposing the steel beams underneath.

An 89-year-old man living in the city of Uki told NewsJP that the earthquake "shook violently up-and-down and side-to-side for about 10 to 20 seconds."

A decade ago, Kumamoto was struck by a series of earthquakes including a magnitude 7 in April 2016. A total of 278 people were killed, NHK reported at the time.

 

[davenn]

From my seismo