TOKYO: Japanese authorities told tens of thousands of people to evacuate the quake-hit region of Ishikawa on Saturday ( Sep 21 ) as “unprecedented” rains triggered floods and landslides.
As of 11am ( 2am GMT ), a dozen rivers in the area had burst their banks, according to land ministry official Masaru Kojima.
The towns of Wajima and Suzu, as well as Noto area, ordered about 44, 700 people to leave, local officials said.
The Japan Meteorological Agency ( JMA ) said it issued its highest level warning for Ishikawa, cautioning of a “life-threatening situation”.
According to JMA forecaster Satoshi Sugimoto, “it is a condition in which you have to secure your safety quickly” that the places under the notice were seeing “heavy weather of extraordinary levels.”
At least one man was missing in Wajima, while several buildings were inundated, with floods blocking pieces of sidewalks, the Ishikawa authorities said in a speech.
A road in Wajima that was completely submerged under water was broadcast by the common broadcaster NHK.
Three river in Ishikawa were overflowing into local communities, a native national told AFP before.
At least one home was hit by a disaster, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said, without giving more information.
The firm also instructed another 16, 000 residents to leave their homes north of Ishikawa in the prefectures of Niigata and Yamagata, according to the company.
Wajima and Suzu, in northern Japan’s Noto coast, were among the sections hardest hit by a great New Year’s Day earthquake that killed at least 236 people.
The area is still reeling from the magnitude-7.5 collapse that toppled houses, ripped up streets and sparked a big fire.
In recent years, Japan has experienced exceptional rainfall in some areas of the nation, with floods and landslides occasionally resulting in fatalities.
Due to a warmer atmosphere, experts claim that human-caused climate change is increasing the risk of heavy rain in the nation and abroad.