A road near Aeon Mall Kumamoto in Kashima, Kumamoto Prefecture, is seen after a magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck near Uki, Kumamoto, on July 29. [AFP]
A road near Aeon Mall Kumamoto in Kashima, Kumamoto Prefecture, is seen after a magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck near Uki, Kumamoto, on July 29. [AFP]

Search and rescue operations at a shopping mall where an explosion killed seven people following the Kumamoto earthquake have concluded, effectively bringing all large-scale search activities to an end. The death toll has risen to 36, while home damage, water outages, extreme heat and prolonged factory shutdowns continue to compound the disaster.

NHK and the Yomiuri Shimbun reported Sunday that rescue and search operations had ended at the mall where an explosion erupted immediately after the magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck on July 28.

Search operations at other major disaster sites had already been completed, making large-scale search activities related to the earthquake in effect over. The Kumamoto Prefecture Disaster Response Headquarters said operations at Aeon Mall Kumamoto were concluded as of noon Saturday, and that authorities would now focus on improving conditions at evacuation shelters.

Police said they ended the search after conducting multiple visual inspections of the site, finding no one remaining inside the building and receiving no reports of missing or unaccounted-for persons.

Seven people died and five were injured at Aeon Mall Kumamoto. Among the dead was a 22-year-old woman who worked at a general goods store inside the mall. Her family said she had evacuated outside after the earthquake but went back into the building, saying her employer had told her to put the day's sales in the safe.

Her family told NHK that she re-entered the store and that an explosion occurred five minutes later. She was found dead alongside a colleague in the early hours of July 29.

The total death toll from the earthquake now stands at 36. Housing damage reached 3,649 units as of 7 p.m. Saturday — more than double the figure from the previous day. Some 9,045 people are currently sheltering at 218 evacuation centers across Kumamoto.

A heat wave gripping Kumamoto Prefecture has added to the suffering, with at least 80 people transported to hospitals for heatstroke or suspected heatstroke in the five days from July 28 through Saturday.

As of Saturday, water supply had been cut to 69,400 households in Kumamoto Prefecture, and some areas with running water were experiencing discolored or turbid flow.

Meanwhile, prolonged factory shutdowns at automakers in Kumamoto are disrupting parts supply chains across the country.

Honda's Kumamoto factory in Ozu — the company's sole motorcycle production facility in Japan — sustained damage in the earthquake and halted operations, according to the Nikkei. A restart is not expected before Aug. 17.

The plant produces 320,000 motorcycles annually. Parts factories operated by other automakers have also shut down, with the impact spreading as far as Honshu, the Nikkei said.

Aisin, a Toyota affiliate that supplies parts to multiple automakers, also suspended operations due to earthquake damage. Recovery work has begun, but no specific restart date has been set. The disruption is expected to widen given that Aisin supplies parts to manufacturers beyond Toyota.

Mitsubishi Motors has halted production of some vehicle models at its Mizushima plant in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture, due to parts supply delays.

Toyota said it would suspend operations at its Tahara plant in Aichi Prefecture through Friday, and extended shutdowns at three factories in Fukuoka Prefecture, Kyushu, through the late hours of Wednesday.


woo@heraldcorp.com