TOKYO: Two peoplewere confirmed dead yesterday as heavy rains pounded southwest Japan, promptingflood and landslide warnings and orders for 870,000 people to seek safety. Morethan a million more people were advised to leave their homes after thecountry's weather agency raised the alert to its highest level for parts ofnorthern Kyushu. The emergency warning is issued "if there is asignificant likelihood of catastrophes".
Officialsconfirmed two deaths, one in western Saga prefecture where a man was found in acar that had been swept away. A second man died in Fukuoka as he tried toescape from a car trapped in rising floodwaters. Government spokesman YoshihideSuga said a third person, in Saga, was in a state of "cardiorespiratoryarrest"-a term usually employed by Japanese officials to indicate aperson's death before it is officially confirmed by a doctor.
"There aremany reports of damage in different areas due to flooding of rivers, landslides,and submerged houses, and there is a possibility of serious damage occurring inthe coming hours," Suga added. Evacuation orders and advisories issued bylocal authorities are not mandatory, although officials urge residents to heedthem. For those leaving after such warnings, government shelters are available,and some choose to stay with friends and family as well.
The fire anddisaster management agency said it had already received multiple reports offlooded houses in Saga and Nagasaki prefectures. "We are seeingunprecedented levels of heavy rains in cities where we issued specialwarnings," a spokesman for the Japan Meteorological Agency told reporters."It is a situation where you should do your best to protect your lives,"weather agency official Yasushi Kajiwara said.
He also urgedthose living in areas currently under evacuation advisories to act quickly. Theweather agency issued its highest warning for heavy rain early morning, beforedowngrading it mid-afternoon. Still, the agency said heavy rain was likely tocontinue in western Japan, with high risks of landslides and flooding.
'Like a sea'
In Saga, a motherwearing a life vest in a rescue boat told public broadcaster NHK she had beensaved from the floodwaters. "I was so scared as I have a little child. I'mworried there could be worse damage because there's an ongoing poweroutage," she said.
Elsewhere, a manin a shelter in Saga said he was sleeping as the floodwater entered his home."When I woke up, water surged to my feet," he told NHK. "I'venever seen anything like this. It's important to evacuate early." TheJMA's emergency warnings affect areas in Saga, Fukuoka and Nagasaki, where thesevere weather has also disrupted transport, forcing the suspension of sometrain services and some road closures.
Televisionfootage showed rivers swollen by the rain and parked cars sitting in muddybrown water nearly up to the vehicles' roofs. Small landslides have alreadybeen reported. At a station in Saga, stranded passengers sat on benches withwater around their ankles. A woman living near an overflowing river said shehad been woken by the sound of heavy rain and a warning alarm on her phoneindicating a disaster alert. "This is very rare. Rice fields and otherplaces are flooded. It's like a sea," she told NHK.
Japaneseauthorities regularly urge people to take evacuation orders seriously,particularly after disastrous heavy rains last summer in Japan's west killedmore than 200 people. Many of the deaths were blamed on the fact thatevacuation orders were issued too late and some people failed to follow them.Entire neighborhoods were buried beneath landslides or submerged in floodwatersduring the disasters. - AFP