Video Shows Damage inside Kumamoto Mall after Explosion

Tokyo, July 29 (Jiji Press)–Video footage released Wednesday by the National Police Agency shows extensive damage inside a shopping mall in Kumamoto Prefecture where an explosion occurred following a powerful earthquake in the southwestern Japan prefecture the previous day. The footage captured the devastated interior of Aeon Mall Kumamoto in the town of Kashima. Its second floor collapsed after the explosion that followed the quake, which registered a seismic intensity of up to 7, the highest level on the Japanese scale, in the prefecture. The 1-minute video was recorded by the prefectural police after officers entered the mall around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday to conduct a search. It showed what is believed to be the mall’s second floor, with a large amount of debris scattered and what appeared to be sections of walls peeled away. Large holes were visible in the ceiling, with pipes hanging down from above. Fallen pillars and shelving units were also seen, while some store signboards had holes in them, highlighting the force of the explosion. “About 30 minutes after I felt the quake, I heard one dry sound unlike anything I had ever heard before,” said Atsushi Date, a 39-year-old pharmacist working at a nearby drugstore. Having seen the damaged building for the first time the following morning, he said in shock, “I can’t believe it.” Around the mall of retail giant Aeon Co., countless pieces of debris were still scattered Wednesday. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]