The search for survivors continued into the early hours Sunday after a flurry of aftershocks hit southwestern Japan the day before, sending rescuers scrambling to reach victims trapped under debris.
Earlier, two big quakes killed at least 35 people, while about 190 others suffered serious injuries, the Japanese government said.
Evacuation orders were issued for areas vulnerable to landslides amid powerful thunderstorms in the area.
Saturday’s massive quake killed 26 people on top of the nine who died in a temblor two days earlier.
The United States Geological Survey reported the magnitude-7.0 earthquake struck at 1:25 a.m. Saturday in the city of Kumamoto on the island of Kyushu, at a depth of 25 miles.
Thursday night, a magnitude-6.5 quake shook the same area. There were more than 130 aftershocks.
7.8 Earthquake in Ecuador
A magnitude-7.8 earthquake occurred Saturday evening on the coast of Ecuador, according to the United States Geological Survey.
The tremor was recorded at a depth of 19.2 kilometers (11.9 miles).
There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries in the capital of Quito, located 173 kilometers (108 miles) from the epicenter of the earthquake. A magnitude-6.9 earthquake struck Ecuador in August 2010.