New Japan Quake Kills Seven, With Widespread Damage Reported

A more powerful quake hit southern Japan early Saturday, killing at least seven people, toppling large buildings and triggering a massive landslide just over a day after an earlier tremor which left nine dead. The epicenter of the quake was near the city of Kumamoto and measured at a shallow depth of 10 km, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The quake on the southwestern island of Kyushu sparked a fresh wave of destruction and was followed by a wave of aftershocks in the region. The powerful shaking set off a huge landslide that swept away homes and cut off a highway in one area, and unlike the earlier quake which mostly affected old houses, larger buildings were damaged and some toppled across Kumamoto prefecture. An official with Kumamoto prefecture said seven were confirmed dead, citing police and fire departments. A government spokesperson said scores were trapped or buried alive. Japan Meteorological Agency initially issued a tsunami warning for the western coast of Kyushu but later lifted it.