Terrifying Footage Shows Moment 7.1-Magnitude Temblor Hits Japan, Dozens Missing

Terrifying footage is coming out of Southwestern Japan on Tuesday after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit the southern main island of Kyushu at 4:27 PM, leaving dozens unaccounted for and a shopping center with a collapsed second floor. (Some outlets are calling it a 6.8.) A tsunami warning was issued but then later rescinded.

Japan quake damage seen from the air

Kumamoto fire and police services are assessing damage from the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that struck southwestern Japan on July 28.

Visit our website for updates: https://t.co/bZpiKm94yl pic.twitter.com/9SP7bw7znq
— NHK WORLD News (@NHKWORLD_News) July 28, 2026

It’s unclear how many people were in the shopping center:

The second floor of the Aeon Mall shopping center in Kashima Town collapsed, trapping an unknown number of people. Around 20 to 30 employees were missing while several other people were dug out and taken to a hospital, Kyodo News agency reported, quoting local police.
The affected area is about 900 kilometers (540 miles) southwest of Tokyo. A tsunami advisory for the Ariake and Yatsushiro Seas on the western coasts of Kumamoto prefecture and three neighboring prefectures was lifted within two hours, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Shopping Mall Collapses in Japan Trapping People Inside After 7.1 Earthquake https://t.co/CTJEd4LRhZ pic.twitter.com/1Xg7rX2oxz
— New York Post (@nypost) July 28, 2026

Remembering the Northridge Quake 30 Years Later, and How the Big Shake Up May Have Led to My Marriage (VIP)

I lived through the '94 Northridge Earthquake in California, and it felt like a locomotive was running through my bedroom. The strength of the shaking here is massive:

A powerful earthquake rocked southern Japan on Tuesday, damaging a shopping mall as well as other buildings and causing injuries. Video captured the intense shaking and the aftermath of the quake. https://t.co/SBon623cpi pic.twitter.com/nK2Vct1Lke
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) July 28, 2026

So far, authorities have not seen any serious damage to major public facilities or infrastructure. Although a 2011 Japanese earthquake crippled the Fukushima nuclear plant and caused the worst nuclear incident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine, the area’s three nuclear facilities report no damage this time.

However, the landmark Kumamoto Castle did suffer damage as a stone wall partially collapsed. It is one of Japan’s oldest castles and was completed in 1607.

A few minutes ago: The stone walls of Kumamoto Castle collapsed following a magnitude 7.1 earthquake (地震 ) that struck 4 km southeast of Uki, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. pic.twitter.com/PwXwldRmIr
— Weather Monitor (@WeatherMonitors) July 28, 2026

A magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck Japan's Kumamoto prefecture, leaving some trapped and others presumed dead inside a partially ‌collapsed shopping mall, damaging the historic Kumamoto Castle and disrupting power to thousands https://t.co/zn2dnDBGS2 pic.twitter.com/War8hI6Yf8
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 28, 2026

The area has been hit by several aftershocks. To me, it’s hard to understand how some of those buildings are still standing considering how hard they were shaking. It gives you a whole new appreciation for engineers. Pray for those still trapped in fallen buildings.

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