Japanese PM visits flood zone amid new warnings
KUMANO, Japan — Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited floodstricken parts of Japan on Wednesday as the death toll from the worst weather disaster in 36 years reached 176 and health worries increased amid scorching heat and the threat of new floods.
Torrential rain unleashed floods and landslides in western Japan last week, bringing death and destruction in particular to neighborhoods built decades ago near steep slopes.
At least 176 people were killed, the government said, with dozens missing in Japan’s worst weather disaster since 1982.
Mr. Abe, who canceled an overseas trip to deal with the disaster, was criticized after a photograph posted on Twitter showed Mr. Abe and his defense minister at a party with lawmakers just as the rains intensified.
After observing damage from a helicopter over Okayama, one of the hardest-hit areas, Mr. Abe visited a crowded evacuation center.
Mr. Abe is up for reelection as party leader in September and has seen his popularity ratings edge back up after taking a hit over a cronyism scandal earlier this year.
His government pledged an initial $4 billion towards recovery on Tuesday, and a later special budget if needed.
With temperatures of 33 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit) or higher predicted for the devastated areas in Okayama and Hiroshima prefectures, attention turned to preventing heat stroke among rescue workers and in evacuation centers where thousands of people sought shelter.
Officials turned to social media to warn of the additional danger of food- borne illnesses, urging people to wash their hands and take other measures against food poisoning.
Evacuation orders were issued for 25 households in the city of Fukuyama after cracks were found in a reservoir.
Water accumulating behind piles of debris blocking rivers also posed a danger after a swollen river rushed into a Fukuyama residential area on Monday, prompting more evacuation orders. —