Eastern Japan rain kills 9

Heavy rain that struck eastern Japan has resulted in nine deaths, according to public broadcaster NHK. The unprecedented deluge caused thousands of homes to flood and significantly disrupted transportation networks. Torrential downpours began late Thursday, prompting landslide warnings and power outages. Forecasters issued Japan's highest-level heavy rain warning for the Chiba region for the first time.

A weather station in the prefecture reported 30 centimeters of rain in just 24 hours, marking it as the wettest August in six decades. By Friday morning, Chiba city recorded more than three times the typical rainfall for the entire month of August, according to Tokyo's land ministry.

As of Saturday evening, the Chiba disaster management office reported eight fatalities, with some victims trapped inside submerged vehicles and others found on streets submerged by floodwaters. Over 70 houses in the Chiba region were partially destroyed, while more than a thousand households experienced flooding, with nearly 600 seeing water levels rise above the floorboards. An estimated 1,200 cars remained abandoned on roads, and authorities were working to tow them away or lift them using jacks.

Japan's Meteorological Agency described the situation as an unprecedented level of heavy rain. Scientists have noted that human-driven climate change is making extreme weather events more frequent, prolonged, and intense.