Japan steps up rescue mission after dozens killed by typhoon
Hundreds of thousands of homes hit by power cuts and flooding after most powerful storm in decades
TENS of thousands of troops were deployed on rescue missions across Japan after a powerful typhoon caused widespread flooding and landslides, leaving at least 26 people dead and 15 missing.
Tokyo was brought to a standstill ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Hagibis – the most powerful storm to hit the country in decades – which made landfall around 7pm on Saturday evening in Shizuoka Prefecture, just south of the capital.
More than six million people were advised to evacuate as record-breaking rainfall and wind gusts of up to 134mph triggered flooding and power cuts.
The storm continued northwards along the east coast – an area badly hit by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami – before reportedly triggering 11 leak alerts at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
As the capital awoke to blue skies yesterday morning, many rain and flood warnings had been lifted, but 376,000 homes had no electricity and 14,000 lacked running water.
Helicopters, boats and 27,000 troops and rescue workers were deployed to assist those stranded in flooded homes.
Shinzō Abe, the prime minister, offered support and condolences. “We will do our utmost to bring about a swift recovery,” he said. “We ask the public to stay vigilant in case of landslides and other hazards.”
Officials had earlier warned that the storm could be the most powerful to hit Japan since 1958, when a typhoon devastated Tokyo and surrounding areas, killing more than 1,200 people.
With dramatic timing, an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 struck off the coast of Chiba – and was felt in Tokyo – shortly before the arrival of the storm, although there were no injuries.
A cargo ship from Panama sank in Tokyo Bay on Saturday night, according to Kyodo News. Five crew members died and three were missing. In Iwaki, a city 120 miles north of Tokyo, a woman in her 70s reportedly died after falling from a rescue helicopter.
More than 15 people were missing yesterday, many swept away in floodwaters, and more than 100 injured, according to NHK, the public broadcaster.
The storm triggered record rainfall. Hakone, a popular resort near Mount Fuji, was deluged with 27in (69 centimetres) of rain in 24 hours.
Among the evacuees was Yuka Ikemura, 24, a nursery school teacher, who sought refuge at a community centre in east Tokyo with two young children.
“We brought with us the bare necessities,” she told Reuters. “I’m scared to think about when we will have run out of diapers and milk.”
The Rugby World Cup was disrupted, with England’s match against France among several to be cancelled.