About The Video Landslides and flooding caused by torrential rain in Japan have killed another 21 people in what has become one of the deadliest natural disasters to hit the country since the earthquake and tsunami at Fukushima in 2011. A total of 176 people have been killed since the downpour began late last week, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Wednesday. Another nine are missing. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in Okayama Prefecture Wednesday morning, surveying the damage in one of the hardest-hit areas.<doc-sep>Torrential rainfall and widespread flooding in Japan has left at least 38 people dead and almost 50 others missing. Record downpours have battered the southwest of the country since Thursday, causing a series of floods and landslides affecting Hiroshima and Okayama prefectures in particular. Authorities have deployed 48,000 rescue workers to search for injured or trapped people as more than 500 homes were reported damaged. At least 10 have died in the Hiroshima prefecture, according to local government agencies, including several thought to have been killed by landslides. Fatalities have also been reported in five other prefectures, and evacuation orders have been issued for almost three million people, with more than a million others advised to leave their homes and 47 people unaccounted for. In Ehime prefecture, a woman was found dead on the second floor of a home hit by a landslide. 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A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris.<doc-sep>Kyoto, about 300km to the east of Hiroshima, has also been hit by downpours. Local resident Manabu Takeshita told the Japan Times website: "Anybody living near the river has got to be nervous because typhoon season is just really starting."<doc-sep>
Send this page to someone via email Rescuers in Japan are racing to find survivors after torrential rains soaked lush landscapes, causing mudslides, displacing thousands of residents and leaving over 120 people dead. The death toll increased to 126 on Monday after days of rain caused massive flooding and landslides that destroyed homes and roadways, cutting access to many communities, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported. READ MORE: Death toll climbs to 81 from torrential rain in Japan Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe cancelled an overseas trip to deal with Japan’s worst flood disaster since 1983, with several million people forced from their homes. WATCH: At least 80 dead as heavy rains hammer Japan 1:30 At least 80 dead as heavy rains hammer Japan At least 80 dead as heavy rains hammer Japan – Jul 8, 2018 According to Japan Times, the prime minister had ordered the mobilization of 73,000 rescue workers who were “putting in utmost efforts to save lives.” Story continues below advertisement The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism said there were nearly 240 landslides in 28 prefectures. READ MORE: Earthquake strikes Osaka in western Japan, elderly man and young girl killed The Japan Meteorological Agency said as much as 100 millimetres of rain per hour fell on large parts of southwestern Japan. As of Monday, all rain warnings had been lifted. In large parts of Hiroshima, water streamed through a residential area, strewn with fallen telephone poles, uprooted trees and mud. Thousands of homes were without clean water and electricity in Hiroshima and other hard-hit areas, where many people lined up for water tanks under the scorching sun, with temperature rising as high as 34C. Photos show people being rescued by helicopters from rooftops of flooded communities, while cars and damaged homes are seen crushed my mud and debris. View image in full screen Residents rescue dogs from flooded area in Kurashiki, Okayama prefecture on July 8, 2018. STR/AFP/Getty Images View image in full screen Cars pictured trapped in the mud after floods in Saka, Hiroshima prefecture on July 8, 2018. Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images View image in full screen A washed out road pictured following heavy rains and flooding in Mihara on July 8, 2018. Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images View image in full screen A man stands next to a flooded residential area in Kurashiki, Okayama prefecture on July 8, 2018. STR/AFP/Getty Images View image in full screen Houses are damaged by a mudslide following heavy rains in Kure city, Hiroshima prefecture, southwestern Japan, July 7, 2018. Koji Harada/Kyodo News via AP View image in full screen The compound of a junior high school is flooded after heavy rains in Kurashiki, Okayama prefecture, southwestern Japan, July 7, 2018. Koji Harada/Kyodo News via AP View image in full screen Rescue workers look for missing people in a house damaged by heavy rain in Kumano town, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 9, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen Cars move along a road covered with mud after heavy rain in Mabi town in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture, Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 9, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen An elderly couple looks at a flooded area after heavy rain in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture, Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 8, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen An overturned car remains on a street after heavy rain in Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 8, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen An aerial view shows a local resident being rescued from a submerged house by rescue workers using helicopter at a flooded area in Kurashiki, southern Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 7, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen Rescue workers are seen next to houses damaged by a landslide following heavy rain in Hiroshima, western Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 7, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen Residents are rescued from a flooded area by Japan Self-Defense Force soldiers in Kurashiki, southern Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 7, 2018. Kyodo/via Reuters View image in full screen An aerial view shows local residents seen on the roof of submerged house at a flooded area as they wait for a rescue in Kurashiki, southern Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo July 7, 2018.