Japan marked one year anniversary since several powerful earthquakes struck the Kumamoto region in southern Japan killing over 50 people and injuring thousands.

A 7.3 magnitude earthquake, followed by several other big quakes, hit the southern island in April 2016 and brought down homes, and forced more than 47,000 residents to evacuate their homes across several cities and towns in the region.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended a memorial ceremony in the city of Kumamoto along with 300 family members of those killed and government officials.

Abe vowed to learn from the latest earthquake and to better prepare the country for other natural disasters.

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