Hospitals in Kumamoto city, the prefecture’s capital, reported that three people had been killed, according to NHK. One hospital said it was treating 88 people for injuries, seven of them serious.
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The Japan Meteorological Agency reported the quake’s preliminary magnitude at 6.4, strong but not at the top of the range for seismically unstable Japan. The earthquake that struck northeastern Japan in 2011, unleashing a powerful tsunami, measured 9.0.

But the quake on Thursday was centered on land, unlike the offshore quake five years ago, and its origin point was a relatively shallow six miles below the surface. As a result, there was no tsunami, but the shaking at the epicenter was especially strong.