Rescue turns to recovery in Japan floods

HIROSHIMA, Japan — Rescuers combed through mud-covered hillsides and near riverbanks Tuesday to look for dozens of people still missing after days of heavy rains caused flooding and mudslides in southwestern Japan, where the death toll has risen to 122.

Officials and reports say more than 80 people are still unaccounted for, many of them in the hardest-hit Hiroshima area.

Several days of heavy rainfall that weather officials have called historic set off flooding and landslides in widespread areas of western Japan, including Hiroshima, Okayama and Ehime prefectures. Many people started to return and check on their homes and begin cleanup after the rain stopped Monday.

The government has set up a task force to speed up deliveries of supplies and other support for evacuation centers and residents in the region, but disrupted roads and other ground transportation have delayed shipment, raising concerns of shortages.

Minoru Katayama, 86, rushed back to his home in Mabi city, in Okayama prefecture, on Monday, and found his 88-year-old wife, Chiyoko, dead on the first floor. Floodwaters rose so fast they caught the couple by surprise.

“My wife could not climb up the stairs, and nobody else was around to help us out,” Katayama told national broadcaster NHK. His wife was among more than 20 people who were found dead in the city, where a river dike collapsed.

The assessment of casualties has been difficult because of the widespread area affected.

Officials in Ehime prefecture asked the central government to review a weather warning system, noting that rain warnings were issued after damage and casualties were occurring.