TOKYO: The death toll from the powerful earthquake that struck southwestern Japan has risen to 13, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced, as emergency teams continue searching for people trapped beneath a collapsed shopping mall in Kumamoto.
Rescue workers are focusing their efforts on the mall, where numerous people remain trapped. A witness told local media that part of the second floor gave way during the quake.
Earlier, a Japanese official told the BBC that several people were still unaccounted for both at the shopping complex and at a nearby factory, where a chimney collapsed during the tremor.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake measured magnitude 6.8. It struck inland on Kyushu island at 4:27 p.m. local time (0727 GMT) on Tuesday.
One eyewitness described the moment of the quake to the BBC, saying the ground suddenly began moving violently beneath their feet.
Footage recorded inside a shop about 3.5 kilometers (2 miles) east of the damaged mall showed children crying as products were scattered across the floor.
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