Search for Missing Continues in Rain-Hit Western Japan; Heatwave Strikes

July 16, 2018

Kurashiki, Okayama Pref.- Rescuers kept working on Sunday to search for people who went missing after recent torrential rain mainly in western Japan regions, as sweltering summer heat continued to batter the Japanese archipelago, including the disaster-hit areas.

A number of people suffered heatstroke in disaster areas amid the scorching heat and were sent to hospital.

On the second day of a three-day weekend, an army of volunteers from across the country helped affected local residents cope with damage from the disaster. The torrential rain has caused extensive flooding and mudslides, inflicting serious damage on wide areas, with Hiroshima, Okayama and Ehime prefectures hit particularly hard.

As of 9 p.m. Sunday (noon GMT), the death toll from the rain disaster stood at 209 in 13 prefectures while the number of missing people stood at 21 in four prefectures, according to a Jiji Press survey.

By prefecture, the number of deaths came to 99 in Hiroshima, 61 in Okayama, 26 in Ehime, five in Kyoto, three each in Yamaguchi, Kochi and Fukuoka, two each in Hyogo, Saga and Kagoshima, and one each in Gifu, Shiga and Miyazaki. The number of missing people stood at 15 in Hiroshima, three in Okayama, two in Ehime and one in Nara.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, temperatures rose to as high as 35.6 degrees Celsius in the Okayama city of Kurashiki and 35.5 degrees in Asakita Ward in the city of Hiroshima, both the highest levels for this year for the areas. The mercury hit 36.0 degrees in the city of Ozu in Ehime.

The agency is calling on rescuers, local residents and volunteers to take enough water and salt to prevent heatstroke.

In Kurashiki's Mabi district, where wide areas were hit by flooding, 31 people in their 10s to 90s, including 14 volunteers, were transported to hospital due to heatstroke, according to the city's fire department. Of them, a man in his 20s is in serious condition.

In Hiroshima Prefecture, 32 people were sent to hospital. Of them, 15, including two volunteers, were in the city of Hiroshima.

In Ehime, a 24-year-old male resident in Ozu complained of heatstroke symptoms when he was cleaning up his house. In the city of Seiyo, a 17-year-old male high school student who was volunteering was transported to hospital.

On Saturday, the first day of the three-day weekend, more than 12,000 volunteers worked in areas hit by the rain disaster, according to the Japan National Council of Social Welfare. On Sunday, the number of volunteers is expected to reach over 10,000.

Over the three days through Monday, a total of more than 30,000 people are expected to volunteer in the afflicted areas, officials of the council said.

According to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, about 5,200 people were staying at evacuation centers as of noon Sunday. Jiji Press