昨日は息子夫婦と孫がわが家に来てくれていた。息子の嫁さんは九州・久留米の出身者。
　夕方になってカミさんが彼女を外出先から連れ戻してきてくれて、わたしはわが家で孫と遊んでいたのですが、ふとMac画面でYahooニュース欄を見たら、「熊本で地震発生」のニュースが飛び込んできた。
　「え〜っ」と一声叫んでから、さっそく彼女は久留米の実家と連絡を取り始めた。先般九州一周の旅で久留米の位置関係がわたしにもようやくアタマに入ってきたので、熊本との近接ぶりが理解できていた。すぐにこのような対応になること、実感は非常に切実に伝わってくる。
　余震も含めて揺れは強く感じられたようですが、今のところは幸い近親者に被害はない模様。
　しかし医療関係の仕事一家なので、熊本からの近接地域として患者さんの「救急搬送」などが予想されるため、事態の進行・推移に注意を深く払っている様子。
　わたしはいまは仕事からは中半はリタイヤしているので孫の面倒を見つつ情報を注意深く聞いていた。彼女には熊本にも友人が多いようで、「あの子大丈夫かなぁ、そうだあの人も・・・」と次々に消息を確認しているようでした。LINEはすぐに繋がって母親とはテレビ電話もしていましたが、無事を願う一択。
　わたしは前回2016年の熊本地震の折りには翌年８月に住宅研究団体「東北フォーラム」の一員として視察取材で訪れていた。いちばん上の写真は今回の地震のニュース画面と、その下は2017年視察のときに熊本市の住宅施策部門から示されていた「被害状況まとめ資料」からの抜粋です。仮設住宅などの状況を視察させていただいていた。この様子は過去ブログ記事でも紹介しています。
　2011年の東日本大震災はわたしにも事業人生の大きな転機になったのですが、前後して起こったこの熊本地震でもこのような経験がフラッシュバックしてくる。まさに有為転変そのものと感じます。そして縁者がこうしてふたたび危機にもさらされ、まことに諸行無常を感じさせられる。
　今回の震災では次々と被害状況がわかってきていますが、テレビニュースではAEONの店舗での爆発事故、行方不明などが大きく報じられている。北海道と九州と離れてはいますが、まことに災害はいつ何時、やってくるかわからない。ひたすら、みなさんの無事を祈念しています。

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English version⬇

[Kumamoto Earthquake Strikes; Flashbacks to My 2016 Damage Assessment Visit]
Having experienced a complete shift in the course of my professional life following the Great East Japan Earthquake, I continue to pray fervently for the safety of everyone affected by this disaster. …

　Yesterday, my son, his wife, and my grandchild came to visit us. My daughter-in-law is originally from Kurume in Kyushu.
As evening fell, my wife brought her back from an outing, and while I was playing with my grandchild at home, I happened to glance at the Yahoo News section on my Mac screen and saw a headline pop up: “Earthquake Strikes Kumamoto.”
　“What?!” I exclaimed, and she immediately began contacting her parents’ home in Kurume. Thanks to a recent trip around Kyushu, I’d finally gotten a handle on where Kurume was located, so I understood just how close it is to Kumamoto. It really hit home how urgently this kind of response is needed.
　It seems the tremors, including the aftershocks, were felt quite strongly, but fortunately, as of now, it appears none of her close relatives have been harmed.
However, since her family works in the medical and nursing fields, they’re closely monitoring the situation’s progress and developments, anticipating that patients from the areas near Kumamoto may need to be transported by ambulance.
　I’m now semi-retired from work, so while looking after my granddaughter, I’ve been listening closely to the news. She seems to have many friends in Kumamoto as well, and she was checking on their well-being one after another, saying things like, “I wonder if that girl is okay… Oh, and that person too…” She was able to connect on LINE right away and even had a video call with her mother, but all we could do was hope they were safe.
　During the previous Kumamoto Earthquake in 2016, I visited the area in August of the following year as a member of the housing research group “Tohoku Forum” for an inspection and reporting trip. The top photo shows a news screen from this recent earthquake, and the one below is an excerpt from the “Summary of Damage” document provided by Kumamoto City’s housing policy department during my 2017 inspection. I was allowed to inspect the conditions of temporary housing and other facilities.

　The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake marked a major turning point in my professional life, and the recent Kumamoto Earthquake, which occurred around the same time, has brought back flashbacks of that experience. I feel this is the very essence of impermanence. And seeing my loved ones once again exposed to such a crisis truly makes me keenly aware of the transience of all things.
　As details of the damage from this disaster continue to emerge, television news is giving extensive coverage to the explosion at an AEON store and reports of missing persons. Although Hokkaido and Kyushu are far apart, it truly is impossible to predict when or where a disaster will strike. I am praying earnestly for everyone’s safety.

● Announcement
My book, *Writers and Living Spaces*, has been published as an e-book by Gentosha.
Available on Amazon.
　
　

Posted on 7月 29th, 2026 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 未分類