TOKYO: Nine people were killed after a powerful earthquake hit southern Japan, collapsing homes, sparking fires and injuring hundreds, officials said Friday as rescuers worked through the night to find residents feared trapped in rubble.
Tens of thousands of people reportedly fled their homes and television footage showed damaged buildings, buckled roads and lumps of broken concrete in the streets after the 6.5-magnitude quake struck the southwestern island of Kyushu.
NHK footage showed what appeared to be a house ablaze and firefighters dousing it with water, one of several fires reportedly sparked by the quake that left at least 780 injured, according to the public broadcaster.
