Japan flood death toll nears 200 as thousands battle heat
KUrasHiKi: Intense heat and water shortages raised fears of disease outbreaks in flood-hit western Japan, as the death toll from the worst weather disaster in 36 years neared 200.
More than 200,000 households had no water a week after torrential rains caused floods and set off landslides across western Japan, bringing death and destruction to decades-old communities built on mountain slopes and flood plains.
The death toll rose to 195, with several dozen people still missing, the government said yesterday.
With daily temperatures above 30°C and high humidity, life in school gymnasiums and other evacuation centres, where families spread out on mats on the floors, began to take a toll.
Television footage showed one elderly woman trying to sleep by kneeling with her upper body on the seat of a folding chair, arms over her eyes to keep out the light.
With few portable fans in the evacuation centres, many survivors tried to cool themselves with paper fans.
The limited water supply meant that people were not getting enough fluids and were in danger of suffering from heatstroke, authorities said.
People were also reluctant to use what water they did have to wash their hands, raising fears of epidemics.
The government sent water trucks to the disaster area but supplies remained limited.
More than 70,000 military, police and firefighters toiled through the debris in a grim search for the missing.
Many areas were buried deep in mud that smelled like sewage and had hardened in the heat, making the search more difficult.