Making his first visit to Kumamoto Saturday after the powerful earthquakes that hit the prefecture and other parts of central Kyushu roughly a week ago, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to throw his full support behind the survivors and those dealing with the aftermath.
Abe's visit to Kumamoto coincided with the resumption of bullet train service Saturday in a key section of Kyushu Shinkansen Line, between Kumamoto and Hakata stations.
Although Abe's visit to Kumamoto was originally planned for April 16 — two days after the first magnitude-6.5 quake hit —it was postponed after the stronger second quake measuring magnitude-7.3 struck the area in the early hours of that day, causing even more serious damage.