Unprecedented Flooding In Japan, 60 Deaths, 550,000 Evacuated

Unprecedented Floods in Japan Kill at Least 60 People – More Than 550,000 Told to Evacuate After 4 Inches of Rain Fall in an Hour

Torrential rain storms that triggered flash floods and mudslides in Japan’s Kyushu region have left 60 people dead or missing.

Hundreds of thousands have also been evacuated to safer area

Flooding and landslides caused by unprecedented rain in southern Japan have left at least 60 people dead. Picture via Youtube video

Torrential rain in the country’s Kyushu region, southwestern Japan, has triggered floods and mudslides.

Authorities say at least 49 people have been confirmed dead, while eleven others are unaccounted for.

Japan’s Meteorological Agency said such rainfall had never been seen before in the region. As much as 4 inches an hour fell at one time.

The heavy rainfall on Friday and Saturday in Kumamoto totaled nearly 20 inches in Minamata and nearly 16 inches in Kuma, Yunomae and Amakusa, according to the Meteorological Agency.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by continued downpours, with up to 300 millimeters of rain in the forecast through Tuesday.

Meteorological authorities in Japan have also issued special heavy rain warnings to three prefectures Nagasaki, Saga, and Fukuoka and the authorities have also issued evacuation orders to 330,000 citizens.

Such orders have also been issued to 205,000 people in Kumamoto Prefecture, and to approximately 35,000 in Miyazaki and Kagoshima Prefecture, totaling 550,000 people across Japan.