Severe rainfall across Japan’s Chiba prefecture has resulted in at least four fatalities and displaced thousands of residents during one of the country’s peak holiday travel periods. The downpour, which deposited more than 360 millimeters of rain within a 24-hour span, caused extensive flooding that damaged homes, vehicles, and transportation infrastructure throughout the region east of Tokyo.
The casualties included a senior male discovered on a submerged roadway and a woman in her mid-60s found trapped inside her inundated vehicle. Two additional deaths were reported, though full details regarding those individuals remain unclear. Authorities also indicated that one additional death was suspected and another person remained missing as of Friday morning.
The disaster occurred during the Bon holiday week, typically Japan’s busiest travel season, creating significant disruption to transportation networks. Over 22,000 homes lost electrical power, while approximately 80 residences sustained water damage. The military mobilized to assist relief operations, successfully evacuating roughly 4,000 stranded passengers from a train station. Additionally, thousands of travelers spent the night at Narita Airport and the Chiba prefectural government building after services were suspended.
As rainfall subsided Friday morning, authorities downgraded severe weather warnings for multiple municipalities, though additional precipitation was anticipated later in the day. Train services resumed with delays, while airport operations returned to normal schedules by Friday.
Originally reported by Aljazeera →
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