Here's a good photo of the Hinagu Fault, the cause of much of Kumamoto's seismic troubles.
2026-08-10 07:44 JST 2026 Here's a good photo of the Hinagu Fault, the cause of much of Kumamoto's seismic troubles. ↗ View original post on Facebook For a link to the original post on Facebook, open this page on a computer. Reactions: 2 · Shares: 1 ← 2026-08-10 06:04 JST 2026-08-10 12:38 JST → Around this time … 2026-08-11 17:28 JSTModeration reduces police burden. -- KirkPolice ask Kumamoto residents to not get blackout drunk as much during earthquake relief efforts 2026-08-11 10:38 JSTGood news about a local boy's world-class success. If you can't read the Japan Times article, try the Nippon.com one. If you'd like a little sample of how amazing Sora was a year ago, check out the YouTube link. -- Kirk https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/08/10/japan/12-year-old-kumamoto-violinist-ny-performance/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntrt-8GYB3Qhttps://www.nippon.com/en/news/yjj2026080800240/12-year-old Kumamoto violinist performs at New York’s Carnegie Hall 2026-08-11 07:33 JSTKirk here. This translation of a Japanese article by AAR Japan [Association for Aid and Relief, Japan] describes two relief-supply distribution hubs intended especially to reach foreign residents in Hikawa Town and Yatsushiro City. The article makes clear that the supplies are not restricted to foreigners; nearby residents who need them can receive them as well. The effort to make the service accessible to the foreign community includes the use of simple Japanese and hiragana on signs and flyers, and, in Yatsushiro, the use of a Vietnamese restaurant and grocery store as a distribution point.--- begin ChatGPT translation ---Distribution Hubs Opened for Foreign Residents Affected by the Disaster: Emergency Assistance for the Kumamoto EarthquakeAugust 10, 2026AAR Japan [Association for Aid and Relief, Japan] has opened distribution hubs in Hikawa Town and Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto Prefecture, both of which suffered extensive damage in the Kumamoto earthquake, where foreign residents affected by the disaster can receive relief supplies and information. Drinking water, food, hygiene products, and other supplies are being distributed free of charge. Supplies are also being provided to nearby residents who need them.[Filipino residents receiving relief supplies in Yatsushiro City on August 9]Assistance and Information Remain Difficult to AccessPeople from a wide range of countries, including Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia, and Nepal, live in the disaster-affected areas. Many work in Japan under the Technical Intern Training Program or with Specified Skilled Worker status.As residents continue to endure difficult living conditions, including water outages, foreign residents in particular are still having difficulty obtaining assistance and information. Since the earthquake, AAR has received reports such as, "Foreign residents are pooling their own money and buying supplies themselves," and "There are international students who say they are too frightened to sleep."While searching for a base from which to distribute relief supplies, AAR received an offer of help from BAR.BASE, a bar in Miyahara, Hikawa Town. Located along one of the town's main roads, it has a parking lot as well as space for storing supplies. Because the bar normally opens after 9:00 p.m., its owners generously told AAR, "Until the water supply is restored, please feel free to use it during the daytime."[AAR's Mitsuru Namatame coordinating relief activities with Tuan, left, of the Vietnamese restaurant San Pham Viet Yatsushiro]AAR has also received assistance from San Pham Viet Yatsushiro, a Vietnamese restaurant in Yatsushiro City. The restaurant itself is closed because of the water outage, but the adjoining Vietnamese grocery store remains open. During business hours, the store and an adjacent warehouse are being made available for the distribution and storage of relief supplies.Using Easy JapaneseSince August 8, the two distribution hubs have been providing drinking water, powdered sports drinks, emergency food, including alpha rice and halal food, body wipes, portable toilets, and other supplies. AAR staff are stationed at the Hikawa Town hub and are also available to provide advice to people facing difficulties.[Signs and flyers designed to be easy to understand for foreign residents who are not proficient in Japanese]To make the information easier to understand for people who have difficulty reading and writing Japanese, AAR created signs and flyers written in hiragana, using phrases such as "ものを くばるところ" ("Place where supplies are distributed") and "おかねは いりません" ("No money is needed"). AAR is also working with the local Junior Chamber and the Kumamoto Support Center for Foreign Residents to spread information about the distribution hubs.Even now, AAR continues to receive requests every day in the disaster-affected areas for relief supplies and advice on rebuilding people's lives. While listening to concerns such as "I don't know how to apply for a disaster victim certificate," AAR will continue its activities so that assistance reaches everyone affected by the disaster, including foreign residents.AAR asks for your support for its emergency relief efforts following the Kumamoto earthquake.--- end translation ---Here is access information for the two distribution points mentioned in the article.Hikawa Town:BAR.BASE689-2 Miyahara, Hikawa-machi, Yatsushiro-gun, Kumamoto 869-4602熊本県八代郡氷川町宮原689-2Entering "BAR.BASE Hikawa" or the Japanese address "熊本県八代郡氷川町宮原689-2" into Google Maps or another map service should show the location.The AAR article says that BAR.BASE is being used for relief activities during the daytime while the water outage continues, but it does not give specific opening and closing times. AAR staff are stationed there to distribute supplies and respond to questions and requests for assistance.BAR.BASE's listed telephone number is 070-7793-5486. This is the bar's own telephone number; AAR does not identify it as a relief-information hotline.Yatsushiro City:San Pham Viet Yatsushiro5-9 Tanaka Nishimachi, Yatsushiro, Kumamoto 866-0876熊本県八代市田中西町5-9The location is in Tanaka Nishimachi, on the northwestern side of central Yatsushiro. Entering "San Pham Viet Yatsushiro" or "熊本県八代市田中西町5-9" into Google Maps or another map service should show the location.According to the AAR article, the Vietnamese restaurant itself is closed because of the water outage, but the adjoining Vietnamese grocery store remains open. Relief supplies are being distributed there during the grocery store's business hours, and the store and an adjacent warehouse are also being used to store supplies.https://aarjapan.gr.jp/report/22634/ 2026-08-10 21:30 JSTHere's a pretty amazing story about an izakaya in downtown Kumamoto, not too far from Tsuruya Department Store. In the short-term being flooded with hot onsen water as a result of the quakes is terrible for the establishment. If would be cool, though, if this could eventually work out well for both the owners and hot spring fans in the area. -- KirkKumamoto earthquake may have created Japan’s newest hot spring inside flooded restaurant [Video] 2026-08-10 12:38 JSTSharing a Safe Summer in Kumamoto.Although the weather was not great this weekend because of the approaching typhoon, I went with my family to Onikizaki Beach in Amakusa.As many of you know, the earthquake damage in southern Kumamoto has been severe. At the same time, I've heard that even in areas with little or no damage, many hotels, restaurants, and tourist facilities have suffered from a large number of cancellations during the summer holiday season.There was another earthquake yesterday, but we didn't feel any shaking where we were. Instead, my family and I enjoyed a relaxing seaside camping trip.Mogushi Beach is beautiful, but Onikizaki Beach was amazing as well. We saw many colorful fish with bright red, blue, and yellow stripes swimming in the clear water. The beach house rents life jackets (¥300) and snorkeling gear (¥500), making it easy for families to enjoy the ocean safely.The photos aren't very good because it was cloudy and I took them with an old smartphone sealed in a 100-yen-store waterproof plastic bag, but the water and the fish were truly beautiful.There are many ways to support Kumamoto's recovery. I hope people will get accurate information, make safe choices, and continue to enjoy what Kumamoto has to offer.Small risks, big adventures.Stay safe and explore boldly.Let's support local shops, restaurants, hotels, and communities while enjoying all that Kumamoto has to offerhttps://share.google/LklKmooT1NOakRqzxhttps://share.google/ugzHVkUlJ8huXV8X3Atsuko (*•̀ㅂ•́)و✧ 2026-08-10 07:44 JSTHere's a good photo of the Hinagu Fault, the cause of much … (this post) 2026-08-10 06:04 JSTPlease excuse this crazy stock image (why would a lawyer have a gavel on his desk?) but I thought I should have a visual cue to indicate what this post is about. I got this inquiry:--- start quote ---I have a friend that used to live here and now only comes back in summers to visit his son. His wife asked him for a divorce just before coming this time. He just asked me if there are any lawyers that he could consult with here that speak English and deal with family law. I seem to remember years ago a post about this but maybe it was on another page. --- end quoteIt was on this page (at least, relevant information has been exchanged here in the past). I used my new kumamoto.kirkmasden.com search function to find these:https://www.facebook.com/1379708514190936/posts/797851839043276https://www.facebook.com/1379708514190936/posts/2712047518868663If any of you have any good leads or recommendations, please share what you know in a comment.-- Kirk 2026-08-10 05:25 JSTThe article indicates that you need register in advance. My impression is that it may be difficult to register and work as a volunteer unless you understand Japanese but, if you're willing and able, you can search for "volunteer" at kumamoto.kirkmasden.com (be sure to sort by "Newest first") to find some posts I made about how to register. -- Kirk https://japantoday.com/category/national/over-1-200-disaster-relief-volunteers-enter-quake-hit-kumamotoOver 1,200 disaster relief volunteers enter quake-hit Kumamoto 2026-08-09 15:05 JSTYesterday I posted about an archive I built for Kumamoto International with the help of AI (Claude and Claude Code). I did that on my computer. It's hard for me to imagine doing something similar on a phone, which seems to be the case with https://imacoco-navi.netlify.app/The site that is described in the article is one that Atsuko first introduced and that I reintroduced here:https://www.facebook.com/1379708514190936/posts/1471434965018290-- Kirk https://www.nippon.com/en/news/yjj2026080800071/P.S. Being a geek, I was curious to know more about how this site was built. I got some help from ChatGPT and learned this:--- ChatGPT's take ---Imacoco Navi appears to be a good example of how several newer tools can make very rapid website development possible. Misato Kaetsu reportedly used Claude on her smartphone to describe the kind of information-sharing site she wanted, and Claude generated the necessary web files and helped her refine them. The site was then deployed through Netlify, a service that can put a website online very quickly without the developer having to configure a conventional web server.For the shared data, the site appears to use Google Firebase, including its Firestore database. That means Kaetsu did not have to build and operate her own database server or much of the usual back-end infrastructure. In effect, Claude could generate the interface and the code connecting it to ready-made cloud services, while Netlify and Firebase handled much of the underlying technical machinery. That helps make the claim that a useful working version could be created on a phone within a few hours quite plausible.--- end quote from ChatGPTGenerative AI Aiding Quake Relief in Kumamoto 2026-08-08 15:37 JSTIntroducing . . . drum roll please . . . the Kumamoto International Archive . . . tada!!!https://kumamoto.kirkmasden.com/It has search capabilities that FAR outclass anything that Facebook offers (all modesty aside). All of the over 7,600 posts can be easily searched with keywords and/or other criteria. The two searches I'm showing do not use keywords (though they could be added); the first searches for the posts made in 2026 that had the biggest reactions (Joe's post hit the ball out of the park in that category) and the second searches for posts made in 2016 that were shared the most (the standout there is a post by Sara about where one can get food and water that she posted after the 2016 quake).Part of my motivation for doing this is to try to work free (to some extent, at least) of the limitations of the Facebook platform. In 2016, lots of young people participated but since then, though our "likes" and followers have grown, young people have largely left; when I tell foreign students at my university about Kumamoto International they shrug and say "I don't use Facebook."I'm planning to add an email delivery option to this archive so that people who want daily updates via email can sign up directly on the website to get them. Complete freedom from Facebook!!I post a lot of links to news articles, which the Facebook algorithm penalizes. The initial idea I had almost 30 years ago was to collate useful information. A fair amount of information about Kumamoto is available in English on the web but it's spread all over the internet. I still believe that organizing information about Kumamoto is a valuable enterprise but, sadly, Facebook doesn't care to support such activities; I can still post but most of the posts languish with very few readers.At any rate, this is my first formal announcement of the launch of this website. I plan to improve it over the coming years but, if you check it out, I think you'll find that it's already pretty good.Take care! -- Kirk 2026-08-08 15:00 JSTThe needs of the disabled is an important issue in this earthquake as it was in 2016. Here's a report from the AAR Japan (Association for Aid and Relief, Japan) about a facility in Uki. There are also asking for financial support. "Kumamoto Cosmos-en in Uki City, Kumamoto Prefecture, is a support facility for people with disabilities that provides employment support and group-home living assistance, serving around 70 users. The facility suffered major damage from the earthquake, including partial destruction of its buildings. When AAR’s emergency team visited two days after the earthquake, more than ten people were sleeping side by side on the floor of a single space. " -- KirkSupport Tailored to the Needs of People with Disabilities and the Elderly: Emergency Response to the Kumamoto Earthquake | News / Report | AAR Japan | Association for Aid and Relief, Japan
