Heavy rain and flooding in north-central Japan strands people and vehicles
TOKYO (AP) — Torrential rain struck Japan’s north-central prefectures of Ishikawa and Toyama on Thursday, triggering flooding and landslides, closing roads and stranding people in flooded homes and vehicles. The Japan…
Torrential rain hit Japan's north-central prefectures of Ishikawa and Toyama on Thursday, causing flooding, landslides, and road closures. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a Level 5 heavy rain warning for parts of the two prefectures, advising residents to take precautions against flooding and landslides. The rain eventually subsided, and the agency lowered the warning to medium level, but warned of more rain and potential landslides through Friday morning.
Up to 20 centimeters (7.8 inches) of rain was forecasted for the Kaga and Noto areas. Over 380,000 people in the two prefectures were advised to seek shelter in safer locations. Footage from NHK public television showed stranded residents in Himi city being rescued by relief workers using a rubber boat in knee-high waters. Several stalled vehicles in flooded roads were left abandoned.
In Ishikawa prefecture, west of Toyama, 270 homes were cut off by flooding in three municipalities, though there were no reports of injuries. Heavy rain also caused several rivers to overflow and closed roads in Ishikawa. The severe weather led to power outages affecting more than 1,000 homes in Toyama and Ishikawa, according to Hokuriku Electric Power Co. Earlier this month, similar heavy rain in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, resulted in 13 deaths.
Written by urgent.news from Associated Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
