World

At least 19 missing after powerful mudslide crashes into homes west of Tokyo – National

A powerful mudslide carrying a deluge of black water and debris crashed into rows of houses in a town west of Tokyo following heavy rains on Saturday, leaving at least 19 people missing, officials said.

Dozens of homes may have been buried in Atami, a town known for hot springs. said Shizuoka prefecture spokesman Takamichi Sugiyama.

Public broadcaster NHK gave the number of missing people at 20, but Sugiyama said the prefecture confirmed at least 19, although he said the number may grow.

Torrential rains have slammed parts of Japan starting earlier this week. Experts said dirt had been loosened, increasing landslide risks in a country filled with valleys and mountains.

Read more:
Up to 34 dead as heavy rains flood southern Japan

Story continues below advertisement

Sugiyama said it had been raining hard in the area all morning. Self-defense forces will join firefighters and police in the rescue operation, he added. Evacuation warnings were issued for a widespread area.

The landslides appeared to have struck multiple times, about as fast as a car. Footage showed a powerful, black mudslide slide down a mountainside, knocking down and crushing houses and sweeping away cars in its way. Helpless neighbors watched in horror, some recording on their phones.

NHK TV footage showed a part of a bridge had collapsed.

Atami is a quaint seaside resort area in Shizuoka prefecture, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Tokyo. The area that was hit by the mudslide, Izusan, includes hot springs, residential areas, shopping streets and a famous shrine.










Dozens believed to have been killed by torrential flooding in southwestern Japan


Dozens believed to have been killed by torrential flooding in southwestern Japan – Jul 6, 2020




© 2021 The Canadian Press

You May Also Like

World

France, which has opened its borders to Canadian tourists, is eager to see Canada reopen to the French. The Canadian border remains closed...

Health

Kashechewan First Nation in northern Ontario is experiencing a “deepening state of emergency” as a result of surging COVID-19 cases in the community...

World

The virus that causes COVID-19 could have started spreading in China as early as October 2019, two months before the first case was identified in the central city of Wuhan, a new study...

World

April Ross and Alix Klineman won the first Olympic gold medal for the United States in women’s beach volleyball since 2012 on Friday,...

© 2021 Newslebrity.com - All Rights Reserved.