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The death toll from torrential rains that hit southern and western Japan rose to at least 62 people for several days, 44 people are lost, not 21 as previously reported. NHK state television says death toll could rise
Ehime, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Kochi, Gifu and Okayama prefectures hit the hardest, with many landslides and landslides
According to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe "The situation is extremely serious." The cabinet chief ordered the use of every possible means to help vulnerable people.
The government established a contact office in the crisis management center of the Prime Minister's Office. At the Saturday government meeting, Abe ordered "the priority to save human life and to send relief teams without delay."
"Many people are missing, others need immediate help". ] In total, 2 million people have already been evacuated from the rains. 64 thousand people participate in rescue operations. firefighters and soldiers of territorial self-defense forces. Their main task is to save people who have sheltered on the roofs of their homes in flooded areas.
On Saturday, the Japan Meteorological Agency issued special weather warnings for three prefectures of Honshu Island, one of the four main islands. possible landslides, rivers and strong winds. 2.3 million people were recommended to evacuate. Kyodo points out that these are warnings that seem to be made if meteorologists assume that floods and landslides can be particularly dangerous, as this happens once or twice. 50 years [1965900] According to NHK television, the water level reached 5 meters in the most affected areas
Torrential rains destroyed transport infrastructure, which further hampered rescue operations
. According to the Kyodo agency, several automakers stopped production as rains and floods disrupted supply routes and threatened employee safety. The operations were stopped in one of Mitsubishi Motors' factories because it was impossible to get a party – Kyodo writes. He also reports that Mazda Motor has shut down production lines in two factories in order not to expose employees to dangerous weather conditions.
The showers that began Thursday are expected to last until Sunday and in some areas until Monday. 19659003] Heavy rains regularly hit Japan, sometimes causing great damage. In 2014, 72 people were killed in the prefecture of Hiroshima and, in 2016, after the typhoon in northern Japan, 15 people were killed.
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