At 4:27 p.m. on July 28, 2026, a magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck Kumamoto Prefecture in southwestern Japan, with a focal depth of 16 kilometers. The cities of Uki and Hikawa Town were the most severely affected. Volunteers from the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation (BTCF) arrived on August 2 bringing relief aid such as beds and shelter partitions as they also surveyed the impact that the earthquake created in the area.
On July 28, 2026, upon learning of the earthquake, the Japan BTCF branch contacted and offered support to those affected in the disaster-stricken areas, and began collecting information on the local disaster situation. In the earthquake, a total of 38 people were killed, while at least 368 people were injured. In the disaster area, 206 shelters were set up housing 8,480 people. As of August 2, 59,000 households were without water as a result of the quake. Power outages caused by the earthquake had been fully resolved by July 31.
As of 7:00 p.m. on August 2, Kumamoto Prefecture reported damage to 4,213 homes. Of these, 181 were completely destroyed, 20 suffered large-scale partial collapse, 225 were partially collapsed, 1,771 sustained partial damage, and 2,016 had damage that had yet to be classified. Ten years ago, Kumamoto Prefecture was also hit by two major earthquakes measuring magnitude 6.5 and 7.3, respectively on April 14 and 16, 2026. As the 2026 earthquake hit, efforts to recover and reconstruct due to the damage made by the previous earthquakes were not yet fully complete. The epicenter of the 2026 earthquake was about 20 kilometers from the epicenter of the earthquake 10 years ago.
One of the major impacts included the AEON MALL Kumamoto in Kashima Town, Kumamoto Prefecture, which was damaged again in this earthquake. A gas explosion and building collapse resulted in multiple deaths and injuries. The office building, large chimney, and some houses and shrines of the Nippon Paper Mill in Yatsushiro City also collapsed in the earthquake, making it one of the areas with the most casualties in the disaster. There were also some elevated roads and bridges in Kumamoto Prefecture that were damaged. Additionally, houses were damaged in Yatsushiro City, Uto City, Uki City, and Hikawa Town.
It was indicated by media reports that most residents in shelters were sleeping on the floor, lacking proper bedding and privacy. Many families, including infants and the elderly, lived in open shelters, facing hot and humid weather with limited ventilation and heat dissipation. Some water treatment plants in the disaster area had been damaged and were unable to produce clean drinking water, which made delivery of bottled water a top priority. Moreover, there was an urgent need to provide makeshift toilets. Due to the high temperatures, the importance of strengthening public awareness on heatstroke prevention and deployment of portable air conditioners was also highlighted.
In addition to continuously monitoring international news from various media outlets and governments, including information from the Kumamoto earthquake relief platform, the Japanese branch of BTCF and its volunteers participated in meetings every evening from July 29th, organized by KVOAD, a local disaster relief platform established after the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake. Together with the staff from the Cabinet Office of the Central Government in Kumamoto Prefecture, local NPOs, and other disaster relief volunteer groups, BTCF learned more about the latest situation and needs in the area.
On the morning of July 31, Yatsushiro City was contacted to confirm the needs. BTCF Global Headquarters quickly shipped 148 beds and 40 shelter partitions, working with the Japan branch to complete the air freight, customs clearance, and logistic arrangements. The first batch of disaster relief supplies donated by Tzu Chi was airlifted to Fukuoka, Japan free of charge by China Airlines on the evening of August 1. It was cleared through customs on August 2 and arrived at the Emergency Relief Supplies Center in Yatsushiro City before noon on August 3, where members of the Tzu Chi disaster relief team received it.
The disaster relief team brought two Tzu Chi-invented patented electric/manual dual-mode water purifiers from the BTCF headquarters to the disaster area. The developer, Dr. Chen Jianhong, made a special trip to the Jing Si Hall in Taoyuan to explain and demonstrate how to operate the water purifier to his colleagues. The AquaPRESS Electric-Free Water Purifier Tank purifies water, sterilizes, and eliminates insects, preventing diseases caused by contaminated drinking water, with the electric mode producing 3,000 ml per minute and the manual mode producing 700 ml per minute. On August 3, the disaster relief team went to Yatsushiro City in the morning to assist in the transportation of supplies and to understand the city government’s plans for their use.
The efforts made by BTCF have not gone unnoticed, with the assistance bringing improved conditions and a sense of support to the people in the disaster-stricken area. Volunteers still continue to monitor the needs for supplies in the disaster area, and the organization will provide further assistance as needed.
Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation
The Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation is a global non-profit humanitarian organization founded in 1966 by Buddhist nun Dharma Master Cheng Yen. Its missions of medicine, charity, education, and humanistic culture have brought relief to 139 countries. The heart of Tzu Chi is embedded in its name: in Chinese, “Tzu” means compassion and “Chi” relief, to relieve the suffering of those in need while creating a better world for all through compassion, love and hope. For more information, visit tzuchi.us. For additional information and media inquiries, welcome to contact us through this form.