Kumamoto quake info: where to go, how to help

Starting with a magnitude-6.5 quake on April 14, a series of major earthquakes have hit the central Kumamoto area of Japan, causing deaths, injuries and widespread damage to the , and infrastructure. As aftershocks continue, tens of thousands of people have moved into evacuation centers which are doing their best to support the evacuees’ needs.

Here is a list of info for people in the area and ways you can help the survivors.

The center is offering shelter to non-Japanese residents, plus translation assistance.

As Kumamoto Prefecture on Friday marked six months since two powerful quakes hit the region, some 200 residents are still living in evacuation centers while many others are residing in temporary housing in hopes of rebuilding their homes.

As of Thursday, the number of people still living in evacuation centers stood at 205 in seven municipalities. Many others whose homes were damaged by the quakes that began April 14 have moved into temporary housing for disaster victims.

Local officials said all evacuation centers in Kumamoto are expected to be closed in the next few weeks. The Kumamoto Prefectural Government said the quakes damaged or destroyed 172,077 homes. About 4,000 temporary housing units have been completed.

Among people living in such units, Kyodo News recently surveyed 50 and found that around 70 percent of them want to rebuild their home in the original location partly because they are accustomed to living there.

Many, however, are unable to do so, citing a lack of money.

Residents can receive up to ¥2 million for housing, but most feel that is not enough.

“To rebuild a house, it costs about ¥20 million and the current amount is not enough,” said a woman in her 60s.

There is also the issue of faults lying underneath residential areas. The land ministry is currently investigating the exact location of the faults and is expected to compile a report by the end of the year. If the report deems building housing is unsafe, municipalities are planning to plant trees instead and have residents move somewhere nearby.

A series of strong earthquakes followed the first one, a magnitude-6.5 quake April 14, including a more powerful magnitude-7.3 temblor on April 16, flattening homes and at one point forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate.

Evacuation centers were set up in numerous areas, including the hard-hit town of Mashiki and the village of Nishihara.

While the direct death toll totaled 50, a further 55 are believed to have died from illness due to stress, fatigue and other quake-related causes after being displaced. They included a baby girl who died of blood poisoning about three weeks after being born prematurely. The baby’s mother at one point spent several nights in a car.

The eruption of Mount Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture over the weekend — the first explosive eruption at the peak since January 1980 — has added to the woes of the region.

網址：http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/10/14/national/kumamoto-marks-six-months-quakes-rebuilding-homes-remains-issue/#.WEYlEOJ97cs

ｋｅｙ　ｗｏｒｄｓ：

multilingual 　使用多種與語言的

fatigue　疲累

magnitude　重要性

evacuees　　疏散人員

Prefecture　長官的職位

ｗｈａｔ　Kumamoto quake

ｗｈｙ　 As Kumamoto Prefecture on Friday marked six months since two powerful quakes hit the region

ｗｈｅｒｅ　Kumamoto,Japan

ｗｈｅｎ　April 14
　

ｗｈｏ　 the area’s residences

ｈｏｗ　a series of major earthquakes have hit the central Kumamoto area of Japan, causing deaths, injuries and widespread damage to the area’s residences and infrastructure