Kumamoto area was hit by deadly earthquakes in 2016

The 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 wer