Prime minister visits quake-hit southern Japan as cleanup begins in intense heat

TOKYO -- Residents in Japan's quake-hit southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto put out heaps of debris for collection and the prime minister visited as the region baked under intense heat.The heat and a lack of water supplies have added to the challenges in the severely damaged areas where Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi briefly visited for the first time since a magnitude 7.1 quake hit Kumamoto Prefecture on Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu last Tuesday.Thirty-eight people died during the quake, including one who died of apparent heat stroke while taking shelter in a car in hot weather and one others whose cause of death is still being investigated, prefectural officials said Monday.Residents put out heaps of debris, broken furniture and damaged appliances for collection, while in the towns of Uki and Hikawa, construction of temporary housing began.More than 46,000 households remained without water and many also faced fuel shortages as the region suffers sweltering heat, stoking fears of heat-related illness. Japan Meteorological Agency predicted that temperatures would rise close to 40 C (104 F) Monday.More than 8,500 people remain at crowded emergency shelters, such as converte...