
A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 struck Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan on Tuesday, according to initial estimates from the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).
The seismic tremor was recorded at 16:27 local time on the island of Kyushu and reached a maximum level of 7 on the Japanese "Shindo" seismic intensity scale, which measures the strength with which an earthquake is felt on the surface.
After the earthquake, Japanese authorities issued a tsunami warning with waves that could reach up to 1 meter high.
"The sea and coastal areas are dangerous. All those in the sea should immediately get out of the water and move away from the coast. As sea currents remain strong, citizens should not enter the sea or approach the coastline until the warning is lifted. In some areas, wave heights may exceed the predicted level," the JMA statement said.
The Japanese government declared an emergency warning for the prefectures of Kumamoto, Nagasaki, Kagoshima, Fukuoka, Saga, Oita and Miyazaki, all located on the southern island of Kyushu.
Kyushu Electric Power said there were no reports of problems at the Sendai and Genkai nuclear power plants after the quake, while JR Kyushu Railway said it had temporarily suspended train services.
熊本 宇城市と氷川町で震度7 有明・八代海に津波技作報https://t.co/fAoIlTGbTd pic.twitter.com/PPRMcpVtp4
— NHK news (@nhk_news) July 28, 2026