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Two confirmed dead thus far. :(

NHK has put an English video report about the earthquake on their web site:
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20160414_54/
Quake of 7 on Japanese scale hit Kumamoto- News - NHK WORLD - English
Officials at Japan's Meteorological Agency are warning people to be on the alert for aftershocks after a magnitude 6.5 earthquake rattled Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on Thursday.

Kumamoto International received this message with many useful links from Kagoshima Koryu (https://www.facebook.com/kagosh):
みなさま　だいじょうぶでしょうか。情報を流します。よろしければお使いくださいませ　柚木　NHK WORLD in 18 languages
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/info/select.html
•NHKラジオニュース / NHK Radio News
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/radio/program/16lang.html
Earthquake Information/Japan Meteorological Agency
http://www.jma.go.jp/jma/en/menu.html
Information
http://www.fdma.go.jp/bousai_manual/e/index.html
NTT Docomo Disaster Message Board Service
https://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/info/disaster/disaster_board/index.html
au Disaster Message Board is available.
http://www.au.kddi.com/english/mobile/anti-disaster/saigai-dengon/
http://www.au.kddi.com/english/?bid=we-we-gn-0002
SoftBank Disaster safety confirmation
http://mb.softbank.jp/en/disaster-message/
web 171
English http://www.ntt-east.co.jp/saigai/web171/web171manual_eng.pdf
中文　http://www.ntt-east.co.jp/saigai/web171/web171manual_chn.pdf
韓国　http://www.ntt-east.co.jp/saigai/web171/web171manual_kor.pdf
Dial 171 to inquire about somebody's safety (NTT Disaster Telephone Message Service)
NTT emergency messaging service
http://www.ntt-east.co.jp/saigai_e/voice171/
Select language - NHK WORLD - English
NHK WORLD is the international broadcasting service of NHK.

Here's the address of the "The Kumamoto Prefecture Earthquake
FACEBOOK SAFETY CHECK"
https://www.facebook.com/safetycheck/kumamoto-prefecture-earthquake-apr14-2016/?search_type=safe
Facebook Safety Check: The Kumamoto Prefecture Earthquake
The Japan Meteorological Agency has detected a magnitude 6.2 earthquake centered in Kumamoto city of Kumamoto prefecture in Kyushu. Multiple aftershocks have been recorded.

Sorry for posting about Kumamon at a time like this. Actually, this was a post that I scheduled before the quake started.
-- Kirk
Kumamon still going strong after 6 years
KUMAMOTO — Kumamon, known for his red cheeks and chubby body, celebrated his sixth birthday on March 12. The character representing Kumamoto Prefecture became an instant star nationwide in 2011 when he won the Yurukyara Grand Prix, a popularity contest of yurukyara — adorable, cuddly or cool charact…

A portion of the castle walls has collapsed. When the report was underway on TV another very strong aftershock (I think it was the 6+ one) came and more rocks fell on live TV.
-- Kirk

We just had a 6+ (Japanese scale) aftershock.

On TV, I just heard that about 20 buildings in Mashiki have collapsed.
-- Kirk

BBC report (Thanks Mark!):
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-36045140

Kirk
Tag: Media
Earthquake topples buildings in southern Japan - BBC News
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 jolts southern Japan, toppling several buildings, though no tsunami alert is issued.

On TV I just heard that about 50 people from the Mashiki area have been carried to Kumamoto Red Cross Hospital for treatment.
-- Kirk

I found the official English page with information about the various quakes. One interesting point is that, although 7 on the Japanese scale was registered in Mashiki, there are no reports of 6+. The next highest intensity rating is 6-. The part of Kumamoto where I live (near Oe) was 5+.
-- Kirk
http://www.jma.go.jp/en/quake/6/20160414213615395-142126.html

The fire in Mashiki that I mentioned earlier seems to have taken in more than one building. Sadly, locals are saying that not everyone has gotten out safely.
-- Kirk

Prime Minister Abe commenting on the quake. His comments about asking his people to find out more about the extent of the damage, etc. are not particularly remarkable. I thought I'd post this, however, as an indication of the level of attention being given to this earthquake. It's definitely a national issue -- not just a local one. I've also heard that a request has been made for more Self-Defence Force personal to be sent to Kumamoto to help with relief and rescue efforts.
-- Kirk

The trains are not running so a person being interviewed on TV right now says he's not sure how he'll get home tonight.

Aerial images of Kumamoto I've seen on TV indicated that soome parts of the city are without power. Fortunately, our neighborhood has power.
-- Kirk

I've seen reports of fires in Mashiki and there have been reports of injuries there.
-- Kirk

One issue I have noticed since the shaking began is that some communication systems are being overwhelmed. I was unable to use my cell phone to home when I was out checking on my students. Also, I just tried to look at several emergency pages for Kumamoto City but have not been able to access them. I suspect that the sudden number of people attempting to access these pages has overwhelmed them. Obviously, servers that carry emergency information need to be prepared to handle sudden and huge increases in access attempts.
--- Kirk

William here -
Introducing the Futagawa fault had occurred to me before, but this evening provides a good opportunity. The fault is a rift zone, meaning the land is spreading apart, which extends from Amakusa - creating the Uto peninsula - through Mt. Aso. In fact, the Tateno gap, through which Shirakawa flows out of the Aso caldera, is a result of the fault; without it, the Aso caldera would be a lake. It created the plain which currently hosts the airport, and the valley between the airport and the mountains to the south is the rift zone. Rift faults are not capable of such powerful earthquakes as other types such as subductive or thrust. What you have experienced is likely the largest quake this fault is capable of.

I was away from my computer for a while because I went to visit the dormitory that houses the exchange students at my university. Fortunately, they are all fine. The main thing I noticed is that many people are gathering in parks and other open spaces. I haven't heard the TV announcements but, apparently, people are being encouraged to leave buildings that might be vulnerable and to move to open spaces.
-- Kirk (one of several editors of this page)

Here's a page that should help you understand Japan's earthquake intensity rating scale (reported as "shindo"). Magnitude is a scientific measure of the amount of energy released whereas shindo tells you how bad the shaking was in each place. So, the two measure different things and you can't convert one into the other.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Meteorological_Agency_seismic_intensity_scale
Japan Meteorological Agency seismic intensity scale - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Japan Meteorological Agency seismic intensity scale is a seismic scale used in Japan and Taiwan to measure the intensity of earthquakes. It is measured in units of shindo (震度?, seismic intensity, lit. "degree of shaking"). Unlike the Moment Magnitude Scale (MMS) (a more accurate scale than the o…