Authorities said Monday that one person was killed and three others were missing as a result of landslides in southern Japan, where the nation’s meteorological office had issued a “heaviest rain ever” warning.
According to the local fire service, a 77-year-old lady was declared deceased in a landslide that invaded her house overnight in rural Fukuoka.
Her spouse was found alive and was transported to the hospital.
Local officials in Karatsu City, Saga prefecture, which borders Fukuoka, said that three further individuals were still missing after a landslide.
The Japan Meteorological Agency advised residents to seek shelter as the Fukuoka and Oita areas ran the danger of floods and landslides due to the heavy downpours.
“A special heavy rain warning has been issued for Fukuoka Prefecture’s local governments. According to Satoshi Sugimoto of the JMA’s prediction branch, this is the most rain the area has ever seen.
“There is a very good chance that some kind of catastrophe has already happened… since of the current circumstances, safety must be ensured since lives are in risk.
Parts of Fukuoka, Oita, and neighboring prefectures received non-obligatory evacuation orders, and these prefectures opened shelters to house individuals fleeing their houses.
A team has been formed, according to the prime minister’s office, to plan a reaction to the rains.
According to operator JR West, the deluge prompted the suspension of bullet train operations between western Hiroshima and Fukuoka.
Currently, Japan is experiencing its yearly rainy season, which often delivers torrential downpours, sometimes causes floods and landslides, as well as fatalities.
Because a warmer atmosphere stores more water, scientists claim that climate change is increasing the probability of heavy rain in Japan and worldwide.
Rain in the central vacation town of Atami in 2021 caused a catastrophic landslide that claimed 27 lives.
And during the rainy season in 2018, landslides and floods in western Japan claimed the lives of over 200 individuals.
