KUMAMOTO, Japan — The death toll climbed to 34 from a powerful earthquake in southwestern Japan that set off an explosion at a mall, toppled a factory chimney and flattened homes, the Kumamoto prefectural government said Friday. Officials said 34 deaths had been confirmed as related to the disaster, with one more death still under investigation. Hiro Komae / AP Electric poles are seen fallen over rail tracks in Hikawa, southern Japan, Thursday, July 30, 2026, two days after an earthquake hit the area. Smaller scale searches continued Friday at the sites of collapsed houses in badly-hit towns in southern Kumamoto. Local trains in quake-hit areas, mainly in southern Kumamoto, were still suspended due to quake damage.