Japanese earthquake: Death toll rises to at least 40

 16 Apr 2016 

Houses are seen in a landslide-hit area in Minamiaso, Kumamoto prefectur (Picture: Kyodo News via AP)

These pictures show the scale of the destruction caused by yesterday’s earthquake in south-western Japan.
The quake, which measured 7.3 on the Richter scale, struck at 1.25am on Saturday, Japanese time – 3.25pm yesterday in the UK.
The death toll has risen to at least 40, while an estimated 1,500 people were injured.
It follows an earthquake on Thursday in the Kyushu region which killed nine people.

Vehicles sit at a parking lot damaged by the earthquake (Picture: Muneyuki Tomari/Kyodo News via AP)

An estimated 20,000 troops have been deployed to help with the rescue operation.
Thursday’s earthquake measured 6.2 on the Richter scale.

A landslide is seen after the earthquake (Picture: Kyodo News via AP)

Kumamoto official Tomoyuki Tanaka told reporters that the death toll is expected to rise, and added that at least 180 of the people injured were in a serious condition.
It is thought that at least 90,000 people have been forced to leave their homes, with worsening weather making rescue efforts more difficult.

Collapsed houses in Mashiki, Kumamoto, Japan (Picture: The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images)

The Japanese news agency Kyodo News reports that 97 cases of people trapped or buried under collapsed buildings were reported to police, and a further 10 have been caught in landslides.

An eight-month-old baby is carried away by a rescue worker after being rescued from her collapsed home (Picture: Reuters/Kumamoto Prefectural Police/Handout)

A man carrying personal belongings walks at a damaged road in Nishihara, Kumamoto, Japan (Picture: The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images)