Thursday’s weaker, magnitude 6.5 earthquake brought down buildings and injured about 800 people. More than 100 aftershocks followed. Since Saturday’s quake was bigger, Thursday’s was technically a foreshock.
Police said on Friday that concern about aftershocks was keeping many people from starting the task of cleaning up. About 44,000 people stayed in shelters after Thursday’s quake.
Of those who died, five were women and four men, the fire and disaster management agency said.
One man was in his 20s, and the rest of the victims ranged from their 50s to one woman in her 90s. Eight of the nine victims were from Mashiki.
The government’s chief spokesman, Yoshihide Suga, said at least 860 people had been injured, 53 seriously, but other reports put the headline figure at 784.
Suga said 1,600 soldiers had joined the relief and rescue efforts. TV reports showed troops delivering blankets and adult diapers to those in shelters. With water service cut off in some areas, residents were hauling water from local offices to their homes to flush toilets.
Most of Japan’s nuclear reactors remain offline following the Fukushima meltdowns in 2011 after a magnitude-9.0 earthquake triggered a tsunami.
Mashiki sits near two faults and is also near Mount Aso, a huge active volcano.