"Exploded Right After We Got Out"... Missing Persons Count Not Even Finalized

Videos captured right after the earthquake on the 28th at AEON Mall Kumamoto, a large shopping center in western Kyushu, Japan, where an explosion and partial collapse occurred following a magnitude 7.1 strong earthquake, convey the tense situation at the time.

Videos published on the website of the Asahi Shimbun on the 29th showed visitors desperately evacuating the shopping mall, cutting through thick white smoke that appeared to have filled the indoor space immediately after the explosion.


The cause of the shopping mall explosion and collapse has not yet been officially announced, but the possibility of a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) leak is being discussed.

Kumamoto Prefecture had announced until the night of the 28th, following the partial collapse of the AEON Mall, that 10 people were unaccounted for and presumed to be inside the mall. However, starting on the 29th, authorities have become cautious about releasing exact figures, stating that they are "still verifying," raising concerns that the scale of the damage could grow further.

Looking at the footage in the videos, many shopping mall visitors hurried toward the exits, bending their bodies and covering their mouths and noses with handkerchiefs or palms as if trying to avoid inhaling smoke.

The pathways leading to the exits presented a chaotic scene mixed with debris from broken cosmetic bottles shaken off by the earthquake and fallen clothing mannequins.


According to Asahi, escalators inside the mall were halted at the time, prompting visitors to move in lines down the stairs from the second floor to the first floor before escaping outside.

Asahi video footage showed a woman, presumed to be a shopping mall employee, guiding customers to evacuate in a desperate voice.

People who were inside at the time told Asahi that there was "no particular panic situation."

A female visitor who escaped outside right after the earthquake struck said, "It seemed most of the customers evacuated outside. Some employees might have remained inside."

She expressed her relief, saying, "It is terrifying to think that an explosion occurred near the shop where I was staying."

A woman in her 20s who was on the second floor of the AEON Mall until just before the collapse told Jiji Press, "After the earthquake, ceiling tiles began to fall and water started pouring down, so I evacuated immediately."

A man who was working at a store inside the mall and evacuated immediately after the strong earthquake described the tense situation, saying, "As soon as I got out, I heard a loud sound like a bomb going off, and when I looked back, white smoke was billowing like a cloud."

Videos uploaded on X (formerly Twitter), apparently filmed by shoppers, contained the voices of visitors saying "It's dangerous," "They say it's a magnitude 7 intensity," and "The smoke is stinging," along with sounds of coughing.

One evacuee told the Yomiuri Shimbun that because it was the summer vacation period, many families had visited the shopping mall with children, and expressed wishes for their safety.

Posts expressing concern, such as "An acquaintance works at AEON Mall Kumamoto and I cannot get in touch with them," were uploaded on X, a social media platform widely used by Japanese people.

According to the videos, outdoor areas of the shopping mall such as the parking lot were also filled with white smoke that appeared to have originated from the explosion, and vehicles such as delivery trucks parked around the mall showed devastating sights with building debris covering them and shattered windows.

Some guardrails around the shopping mall were even bent like pieces of taffy.

The parking lot was congested with vehicles trying to leave the mall, and a procession of police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks continued on the road heading toward the mall, evacuated visitors reported.

The cause of the shopping mall explosion and collapse is not yet officially known.

A man who evacuated after working at a store inside the mall mentioned that there is an LPG tank near the mall.

The Yomiuri Shimbun reported that a senior Japanese government official also mentioned the possibility of an explosion caused by an LPG leak.

Professor Ichitoku Kuwana of Tokyo University of Science (Fire Science) told Asahi, "There is a possibility that gas leaked from air conditioning equipment damaged by the earthquake and exploded."

He pointed out that large-scale facilities like shopping malls use a considerable amount of gas, creating a potential for major explosions in the event of earthquakes and other incidents.

During the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, high-pressure gas pipelines ruptured at an oil refinery facility in Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo, leading to a large-scale explosion and fire accident from the leaked gas.

In disaster-stricken areas of the Kumamoto earthquake including the AEON Mall where the explosion and partial building collapse occurred, police, firefighters, and the Self-Defense Forces have arrived sequentially to conduct rescue operations, but they are reportedly facing difficulties due to the possibility of additional explosions and collapses.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stated that as of 8:30 AM on the 29th, 13 fatalities have been confirmed, alongside large-scale damage caused by the strong earthquake, including building collapses, fires, and road damages.

Kumamoto Prefecture initially tallied that the safety of about 20 people presumed to have been inside the shopping mall could not be confirmed on the afternoon of the 28th right after the mall accident, and later announced that 10 people were missing.

However, starting on the 29th, Kumamoto Prefecture has been announcing that it is "verifying" the situation without specifically disclosing the number of missing persons related to the AEON Mall.

Meanwhile, JR Kyushu has completely suspended the operation of Kyushu Shinkansen bullet trains starting from the first trains on the 29th to inspect tracks and facilities.

Local media reported that the earthquake affected telecommunications services, causing inconvenience to residents in various parts of Kumamoto Prefecture on the morning of this day as mobile phones remained out of service.

(Photo: Asahi Shimbun video capture, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.