Japan's fire service says many people are trapped in a shopping centre after an earthquake in Kumamoto - one witness reported the second floor collapsing
The earthquake - estimated at 6.8 magnitude by the US Geological Survey - hit inland on Kyushu island at 16:27 local time (07:27 GMT) on Tuesday
The solid ground just suddenly turned into a mass that was moving, one eyewitness tells the BBC
Local media reports say 20 to 30 shopping centre staff may be missing - but that figure has not been confirmed
Dramatic footage from inside a shop shows children crying and products all over the floor
Elsewhere in the Kumamoto prefecture, people are reported missing at a factory after a chimney collapsed
By Thomas Spencer
We have verified a video showing the moment a hotel in Kumamoto was severely shaken by the earthquake.
In the clip, the high-rise REF Kumamoto hotel can be seen rocking from side-to-side but appears to withstand the force of the tremors.
Birds in nearby trees can also be seen taking flight as the building sways.
Image source, ReutersIt's the early hours of Wednesday morning in Kumamoto, where a search operation continues at the Aeon shopping mall. Here's the latest:
Image source, Felix UmlandFelix Umland, a German photography student in Japan was on the 13th floor of a hotel in Kagoshima, about 175km from the epicentre, when the Japan earthquake struck.
He tells BBC Newhour about the moment the earthquake started: "My phone started blaring an earthquake warning. I was just looking at my phone thinking I don't know what to do now... Five seconds later everything started shaking."
"I just heard glasses flying in the kitchen and everything in the kitchen started breaking," he says.
"There's not much you can do, it's a pretty hopeless situation. You're looking around waiting for it to stop."
Umland adds that although buildings are built to move with the Earth, "it feels like the building beneath you turns into liquid. It's a very surreal feeling".
"The solid ground just suddenly turned into a mass that was moving."
As we've been reporting today's earthquake in Kumamoto was initially recorded at a 7.1 magnitude.
And in its most recent update, the Japan Meteorological Agency lists its provisional magnitude value as 7.1.
But, the US Geological Survey, external has estimated the quake's magnitude was 6.8.
Earthquake magnitude figures are often updated as seismologists obtain and analyse new data.
As a result, it can often take days for a consensus to be reached on the best overall estimate of a quake's magnitude.
By Richard Irvine-Brown
We’ve verified dramatic footage from inside the Kumamoto branch of retail warehouse chain Costco, 3.5km (two miles) to the east of the Aeon Mall.
One video starts with the sound of a small bang after which children can be seen crying and clinging to their parents as the lights flicker on and off.
People are also visibly trying to navigate pallets of goods that have fallen from high shelves. Some have been trapped by the falling items while others are seen trying to help them out.
Families flee falling merchandise inside Kumamoto supermarket
More than 40,000 households are without power in the aftermath of the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that hit inland on the island of Kyushu, according to an update on Kyushu Electric's website.
This comes as residents in Hikawa town, which sits roughly 25 km (15 miles) south of Kumamoto City, are reporting water and electricity outages, according to Japan's public broadcaster NHK.
NHK says that the power and water outages are affecting "a wide area" within the town.
The outlet adds that Hikawa town hall is one of the buildings affected, and is without lighting or air conditioning after one of its two emergency power sources failed.
Image source, Getty ImagesThe town of Mashiki, pictured on 20 April 2016
The Kumamoto prefecture is no stranger to earthquakes, and has been hit by powerful ones in the past.
In 2016, the prefecture was struck by a series of earthquakes. These included a magnitude 6.5 which hit the town of Mashiki on 14 April, and a magnitude 7.3 which struck the same area two days later.
According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, 278 people were killed by those earthquakes in Kumamoto and in the neighbouring Oita Prefecture.
There were also a number of deaths linked to health problems caused by the stress of evacuation, the outlet says.
Speaking at a press conference earlier, Shinji Kiyomoto of Japan's Meteorological Agency asked the public to "remain vigilant" for additional earthquakes, referencing the events of 2016.
Image source, Getty ImagesThe 2016 earthquakes required an enormous recovery operation
Kumamoto - where the collapsed Aeon Mall is located - is a city on the Kyushu island of Japan.
Japan doesn't have a mainland. It is made up of four primary islands, one of which is Kyushu. The other three are Honshu, Hokkaido and Shikoku.
There are also thousands of smaller islands that sit further out.
The southern island of Kyushu is the third-largest of the four main islands in Japan, and the second most populous.
By Richard Irvine-Brown and Yi Ma
Two videos have been verified from outside the Aeon Mall showing damage to the south side of the building.
Some of the building’s facades have been ripped apart in the earthquake while large sections of an awning have been thrown across the car park to a nearby road.
Smashed advertising boards and rubble from the shopping centre are also captured in the clips.
In one video, emergency workers are preparing a trolley near a waiting ambulance.
Tremors from today's 7.1 magnitude earthquake caused historic walls at the 17th century-built Kumamoto castle to tumble.
It isn't the first time the castle has succumbed to an earthquake, when a 7.3 magnitude quake hit the region in 2016, parts of the 400-year-old castle were also damaged when turrets and curved walls collapsed.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, ReutersIt's now past 22:00 in Kumamoto, and we're seeing rescue teams searching through the rubble of the collapsed Aeon Mall as night time sets in.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Kyodo via ReutersSeveral people are missing after a chimney collapsed at a paper factory in the Kumamoto prefecture, according to the police who are being cited by Japan's public broadcaster NHK.
Police and firefighters are investigating the scene at Nippon Paper Industries Yatsushiro Plant, which is located in Yatsushiro City in the wider Kumamoto prefecture, says the outlet.
An aerial photograph of the site obtained by Reuters news agency appears to show a broken and collapsed chimney.
By Richard Irvine-Brown
We’ve verified a minute-long video showing people making their way toward the exits of the Aeon Mall. Many of those seen in the footage appear to remain remarkably calm as an alarm sounds.
In the clip, one man can be seen carrying a baby and a woman can be seen with her arm around the shoulder of a child as they walk out of the building.
As the camera pans, we can see shelves hanging loose and debris scattered on the floor including tiles from the building and cups and baskets from a coffee shop.
Image source, XThe latest pictures from Kumamoto are now starting to reach us.
As a reminder, Japenese firefighters have confirmed that many people are trapped inside the shopping centre in the city on Kyushu Island.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, ReuMultiple people believed to be employees of the Aeon Mall Kumamoto are believed to be missing, Japan's public broadcaster NHK is reporting citing the National Police Agency.
According to the outlet, police sources say that contact has been lost with 20 to 30 employees and emergency services are working to establish if any are trapped inside the shopping centre.
Earlier, NHK had reported that Aeon employees had guided customers to evacuate outside the building before an explosion occurred.
Image source, ReutersRescue workers at the Aeon mall shopping centre
Jake Kwon
Seoul correspondent
We’re still grasping the scale of destruction and possible injury.
We have just heard from the prime minister, saying she had received reports of injuries and mobilised 3,600 self-defence forces to save human lives.
The place we are most concerned about is the shopping centre outside Kumamoto city. Officials say the second floor collapsed after the tremor, and many people inside are trapped. We have seen rescue workers going in.
Authorities are also warning people about the day two tremor. More than two hundred people were killed ten years ago when earthquakes struck the same island - the second tremor was more powerful than the first.
And this is why authorities are advising people to keep their eyes and ears close to the radio and television for possible take shelter or evacuation orders.
Image source, EPATokyo Haneda Airport is currently experiencing several delays and cancellations because of the earthquake.
The airport, which is hundreds of miles from Kumamoto, currently has over 40 domestic and international flights delayed or cancelled.
Regional and connecting flights are affected, and passengers have been told they should check the status of the flight with their airline before travelling
Japan's meteorological agency says there were a total of 61 aftershocks recorded following today's initial earthquake.
It says these ranged from one to six in seismic intensity.
For comparison, after the 2016 earthquake in Kumamoto that injured more than 1,000 and killed over 40 people, it says that quakes with a seismic intensity of seven quakes took place over two days.
Alongside the magnitude measurement scale, Japan uses its own seismic intensity scale.
This ranges from zero to seven in severity. According to Japan's meteorological agency, zero means people do not feel any shaking at all, external, while seven means furniture will be moved or thrown around by the quake, and buildings that have low resistance to earthquakes might collapse.
Image source, EPAPeople gather outside a building following a powerful earthquake in Kumamoto City
We're seeing an image of a collapsed footbridge in the Kumamoto region following today's 7.1 magnitude earthquake.
It's unclear if anyone was injured, or when the collapse took place. Traffic appears to be travelling on the bridge that runs parallel to it.
Image source, ReutersWe've heard an updated statement from Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
A statement says: "Following a request from the Governor of Kumamoto, the Self-Defence Forces are currently operating in the disaster-hit areas with 3,600 personnel.
"At this critical situation, guided by the principle of ‘human life first’, we are working in close cooperation with local authorities to minimise damage as much as possible and ensure the safety of the public."
As late evening approaches, she says teams will work "tirelessly through the night" to assess the extent of the damage and monitor affected areas.
