- The tremor that hit the southern Japanese island of Kyushu damaged the 400-year-old Kumamoto castle
- The powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake on Saturday left 18 people dead, injuring more than 1,500
- The powerful earthquake came barely a day after weaker tremors were felt in the same region, killing nine people
KUMAMOTO, Japan – The deadly 7.3 magnitude earthquake that hit the southern Japanese island of Kyushu didn’t only damage modern infrastructure but also breached the walls of a samurai-era castle.
Daisuke Kikuchi mentioned in his article for the Japan Times published on April 15 that the fortification in the city of Kumamoto has stood as one of Kyushu’s icons from the time it was built in 1607 by Kiyomasa Kato.
Kato, a veteran military campaigner, and feudal lord took part in the reunification of Japan which had been ravaged by a century of war that time.
Photos and video clips that has circulated in Japanese media on Saturday showed a large section of the castle’s stone wall hat has been damaged and collapsed in a dusty heap.
The powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake on Saturday left 18 people dead and injured more than 1,500 while many were still trapped in collapsed buildings.
An article by ABC News published on April 15 said that the temblor came barely a day after weaker tremors were felt in the same region, killing nine people.
The castle was still intact, and so far withstood the series of earthquakes from the time a concrete reconstruction was built in 1960. However, many of the stone walls are originals from the 17th century.
In 1877, during the Satsuma Rebellion, the castle survived an artillery fire when it came under siege from a rebel samurai army. Much of the castle structure later burned down during the conflict, although the walls managed to stand firm.
The castle’s administrative office has closed it to the public.
“Please do not go close to the stone walls as aftershocks continue,” the office said on its Facebook page.
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