At least two people are feared dead and 13 others missing in western Japan after record heavy rain triggered massive floods and landslides, prompting evacuation orders for more than 76,000 residents. The weather agency downgraded rain warnings on Saturday from the highest emergency level in Kumamoto and Kagoshima on Kyushu island, but Prime Minister Shinzo Abe urged locals to remain 'on maximum alert'.
Abe ordered 10,000 troops to stand by for immediate deployment to join rescue and recovery operations, pledging the central government would 'do its best to take emergency measures, prioritising people's lives'. Two people were found in cardio-respiratory arrest and another was missing in landslides in Kumamoto, said Naosaka Miyahara, a disaster management official, using a term often used before a doctor certifies death.
Public broadcaster NHK reported about 100 people stranded as roads were cut off by floods and landslides. Television footage showed vehicles swamped in car parks near a flooding river, with several bridges washed away. Aerial footage captured a resident being lifted from a roof by a military helicopter as an entire town was awash with muddy water.
'We have issued evacuation orders after record heavy rain,' said Toshiaki Mizukami, another Kumamoto official. 'We strongly urge people to take action to protect their lives as it's still raining quite heavily.' Kyodo News reported 76,600 residents in Kumamoto and Kagoshima were ordered to evacuate. Some train services have been suspended, and more than 8,000 households lost power.
