Major quake hits southern Japan, workers missing after mall blast

A magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck Japan’s southern Kumamoto prefecture on Tuesday, cutting power for thousands of homes, rupturing roads, and partially collapsing a shopping mall where people were trapped. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said authorities were still assessing damage, citing injuries, power outages, fires, road and bridge damage, and building collapses. Around 300,000 people were told to evacuate to centers, with hundreds of soldiers helping as aftershocks continued on Japan’s southwestern island of Kyushu. NHK reported 20 to 30 workers missing after an explosion at the largest mall; investigators are considering a possible gas blast.