Several feared trapped in collapsed shopping mall after Japan quake

By Yumi Asada, Chris Lau, Todd Symons and Issy Ronald

(CNN) — Several people are trapped inside a shopping mall that partially collapsed in an explosion after a large 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the Japanese city of Kumamoto on Tuesday, according to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK.

It is unclear how many people were trapped inside when the second floor of the building collapsed, NHK reported, citing fire officials. About 50 people were injured in the blast, NHK reported.

The earthquake struck the city of Kumamoto, about 55 miles (90 kilometers) east of Nagasaki in southern Japan, on Tuesday afternoon local time, causing a highway bridge to buckle, and at least one other building to collapse.

In their initial estimate, local police said nine people were unaccounted for but Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stressed to reporters the number of casualties and extent of the damage was unclear and still being assessed, Reuters reported.

“We have already been informed that people have been injured,” ⁠Takaichi said. “Power outages and fires have occurred in some areas, and there has also been damage to roads and bridges and the collapse of buildings.”

Chipmaker TSMC evacuated workers from its plant in the area as a precaution, a spokesperson for the firm told Reuters.

A massive earthquake in Kumamoto 10 years ago killed 275 people ‌and injured 2,739 more.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

The-CNN-Wire
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