Soldiers and emergency workers combed through a badly damaged shopping centre and collapsed houses looking for trapped survivors on Wednesday after a powerful earthquake that killed at least 18 people in southwestern Japan. Some of the most serious damage was at the Aeon Mall shopping centre in Kashima city, which was bustling with thousands of people when the quake happened. The company said some 3,000 customers were evacuated to a car park before a gas explosion happened in another part of the mall, where some people were still working. Emergency workers inspect the damaged Aeon Mall on Wednesday. Witnesses said the explosion shook the area as much as the quake did.