Meanwhile, the Iwate Prefectural Government said Sunday two bodies have been newly found and identified in the town of Iwaizumi in the prefecture, hit hard by downpours caused by Typhoon Lionrock last week. The Self-Defense Forces used helicopters to help residents get to shelters as officials made efforts to prevent the town from being cut off again by a typhoon. As of Sunday, Namtheun was heading north toward Kyushu, the Meteorological Agency said, noting that warnings for strong wind, heavy rain and floods had been issued for Kyushu. Lionrock became the first typhoon to land on the Pacific coast of Tohoku last Tuesday, dumping torrential rain over a wide area. Overflowing rivers wreaked havoc, stranding many communities in the largely agricultural northeast. Iwaizumi lost nine elderly people who were buried without warning in a care facility that was engulfed by floodwaters from a nearby river. Before Lionrock, two typhoons had claimed at least two lives in Japan's northeast.
The death toll in Japan from Typhoon Lionrock rises to 17 with several people still missing. Typhoon Namtheun is now threatening the main island of Kyushu.