About 20 Unaccounted For After Shizuoka Landslide
Police and firefighters are searching for about 20 people unaccounted for after huge landslides swept away houses in Shizuoka Prefecture.
Torrential rain has been lashing areas along the Pacific coast of Japan since early Saturday.
In the city of Atami, about 30 personnel from the Self-Defense Forces are joining the search and rescue operation.
City officials issued the highest level of evacuation order to around 20,000 households in the city after the mudslides. People there have been told to secure safety immediately.
One local resident told NHK that he fled to higher ground after he saw mudslides nearby. Another said he heard the mudslides first, as they washed away houses and utility poles.
Meteorological Agency officials say the downpours are due to a lingering seasonal rain front. Shizuoka and Kanagawa prefectures are getting the worst of it.
The officials say Atami City has already seen more than the average rainfall for the whole of July.
Authorities have issued landslide warnings for parts of Shizuoka, Kanagawa and Chiba prefectures. Some rivers have already exceeded the flood danger level.
They warn there could be more landslides, swollen rivers and flooding in low-lying areas. They're asking people to keep up-to-date with the latest evacuation information.