RESCUE OPERATIONS CONTINUE IN FLOODED SOUTHWEST JAPAN

Rescue operations continued Sunday in the flood-ravaged southwestern Japan prefecture of Kumamoto where one person was confirmed dead and at least 15 others may have also perished, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported on July 5, 2020.

Rescuers struggled to reach hard-hit areas along the Kuma River which broke its banks at several locations after torrential rain struck the area early Saturday, causing massive flooding.

At least nine people remain missing and some residents in the prefecture's central and southern parts, including in the cities of Yatsushiro and Hitoyoshi, became isolated after floods and mudslides cut off roads and swept away buildings. Ground Self-Defense Force personnel have been dispatched to the region as part of relief efforts. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said around 10,000 SDF personnel will be mobilized.

A rain front began bringing downpours to the region between late Friday and early Saturday. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued an evacuation order for a total of 203,200 residents in Kumamoto and neighboring Kagoshima Prefecture where more than 100 shelters were set up. In the Kumamoto Prefecture village of Kuma, 14 residents of a flood-hit nursing home were found showing no vital signs but have yet to be officially declared as having been killed. The one confirmed fatality is a woman who died in the town of Ashikita.

[Photo: @masa_yagami | TWITTER]