Below is a roundup of recent Kumanichi articles:

Amakusa has topped a survey of locations in Kyushu/Yamaguchi that visitors are most happy to having stayed at, narrowly edging out Beppu. Third on the list was Kumamoto’s Hirayama Onsen. Reasons for selecting Amakusa included “fresh fruits of the sea, magnificent views, plentiful onsen, and the World Heritage Site.”
Kumamoto Zoo’s golden snub‐nosed monkey Pao Pao (パオパオ, 宝宝), who had just turned 29 (about 90 in human years) and had lived at the zoo since 1993, succumbed yesterday to chronic gastroenteritis. This follows the death on June 22 of another of the same breed, Shin Shin, who was 21. This leaves three golden snub‐nosed monkeys at the zoo, including Pao Pao’s bereaved mate, Hen Hen (27) and two of their six offspring, Fei Fei (19) and Yo Yo (14). (Apologies - my previous summary of this story included inaccurate information.)
Inspections on block walls of elementary schools conducted after the recent Osaka earthquake found 29 cases where reinforcement is required and 16 which require complete replacement. Work on this project began yesterday. (Summer is obviously the time when major school construction projects are conducted. My kids’ alma mater finally got air conditioning!)
In case you’re missing the quakes (I am; my dog’s not), a recent survey on quake probability ranked Kumamoto amongst the highest risk at 26% or above over the next 30 years, so you’ve got that to look forward to. A geologist noted, “While the risk on the Futagawa fault is basically zero, many other faults exist, so one should not grow complacent.” A risk map is at the link.
The castle’s main dojon was opened to reporters who, being reporters, reported on what they saw. While exterior work shows signs of completion, with coatings of extra-strong stucco currently being applied, the interior, which is undergoing major quake retrofitting, still exhibits bare pillars and beams. The article lists a whole slew of measures being taken to strengthen the donjon, the details of which you likely don’t care about, so I won’t list them except to say that they are so numerous that the completion date remains unknown. (If you are interested, let me know, and I’ll list them in the comments section.)

And that’s it for the news. All links are below. Congratulations to Pao Pao! - William

https://this.kiji.is/384478452100842593?c=92619697908483575 https://this.kiji.is/384901236317209697?c=92619697908483575 https://this.kiji.is/384684222172218465?c=92619697908483575 https://this.kiji.is/384667193037948001?c=92619697908483575