Japan evacuation: More than 1m people ordered to flee as torrential rains batter Kyushu island
Forecasters expect as much as 300mm more rain could fall in some areas, threatening widespread flooding
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Your support makes all the difference.Japan has ordered more than one million people on the southern main island of Kyushu to evacuate to designated shelters as torrential rains batter the region.
Parts of Kyushu have received over 1,000mm (39.4in) of rain since Friday – about as much as usually falls during the whole month of July, broadcaster NHK said.
Forecasters expect as much as 300mm more rain could fall in some areas by Thursday evening.
The heavy rains have triggered small landslides, which have killed an elderly woman in Kagoshima, and threaten to cause widespread flooding.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency issued evacuation orders for 1.1 million residents of Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures at the southern tip of the island. Around 930,000 more people were advised to leave.
Kotaro Nogami, Japan’s deputy chief cabinet secretary, said 14,000 ground troops were on standby for emergency rescue and search operations.
He urged residents to use caution and try to evacuate early “to protect your lives” rather than waiting until the last minute.
One woman in an evacuation centre told NKH: “I live alone next to a river, and it’s scary to think of water rising.”
Another said the volume of rainfall was “terrible”.
Several small landslides were reported, including one that swept away a mother and a child in a car, causing minor injuries.
Shinzo Abe, Japan’s prime minister, said residents should ”take steps to protect their lives, including early evacuation,” and he ordered the military to prepare for rescue operations.
Mr Abe was criticised for the government’s slow response in July a year ago, after heavy rains triggered landslides and floods, killing more than 200 people in Japan’s worst weather-related disaster in 36 years.
Additional reporting by agencies
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