2 Missing As Torrential Rain Hits Central, Northern Japan
Rain continues to pound parts of Niigata Prefecture, the Tohoku and Hokuriku regions, and officials are surveying the damage.
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno Hirokazu told reporters on Thursday morning that the central government was informed by municipalities that two people were missing as of 9:30 a.m.
Matsuno said many houses were damaged by mudslides and inundated by floods, especially in Yamagata and Niigata prefectures. He added that several rivers breached their banks, and mudslides have occurred in various locations.
The heavy rain caused the collapse of a railway bridge over a river in a city in northern Fukushima Prefecture. Local train services have been suspended.
In a village in northern Niigata Prefecture, about 150 millimeters of rain fell in just one hour early this morning.
A resident said, "This area has been protected to some extent, so I could have never imagined the damage would be so severe."
Residential areas in the city of Murakami are also facing significant flooding. Mud and debris flowed down from the mountains, destroying homes. Dozens of people have called police to ask for help.
In neighboring Yamagata Prefecture, a bridge collapsed in the town of Iide. Witnesses say a car that was on the bridge at the time was swept away.
Police have received several reports about missing people. They hope to launch a search mission, but the river level is still dangerously high.
The local fire departments have received about 100 reports of flooded homes.