REGULATORY

Pipe Damage Causes Water Leak at Sawai Plant after Quake: MHLW

July 30, 2026
Japanese Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno
Japanese Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno

A water leak caused by damaged piping has been reported at one of Sawai Pharmaceutical's factories in Fukuoka Prefecture following a massive earthquake that hit southwestern Japan on July 28. However, the incident is unlikely to affect product supplies.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) said on July 29 that the leak at Sawai’s Daini Kyushu Factory is expected to take several days to repair, but the generic maker has sufficient inventory to maintain supplies. Other manufacturers have also reported damage, but none has reported disruptions to product supply.

At a meeting of the ministry’s disaster response headquarters the same day, Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno said three MHLW officials had been dispatched to the Kumamoto prefectural government to support disaster response efforts. He instructed ministry staff to continue gathering information and provide all possible assistance to affected residents.

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