‘The shaking was terrifying’: stories of survival and loss emerge after Japan earthquake

Published July 29, 2026 · Category: News

Overview

Rescuers pulling people from the wreckage in southern Japan in a haunting repeat of disaster that struck 10 years ago

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“There was a voice coming from the collapsed house, and I could see a hand,” Tomohide Nagata, a volunteer firefighter, told the Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun. “One of our senior members crawled in and pulled him out. He was bleeding from the head, but I’m so glad he survived.”

Details

Nagata had heard a noise coming from one completely flattened home in the rural town of Hikawa, close to the epicentre of Tuesday’s 6.8-magnitude earthquake in southern Japan. The town was one of the areas hardest hit, with numerous older houses collapsing. Terrified of the ongoing aftershocks, many residents spent Tuesday night in their cars outside Hikawa’s town hall, where staff distributed food and drinks.

Source

Originally published at www.theguardian.com.

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