Hundreds of thousands of residents of Nagasaki and other parts of Kyushu island in southwest Japan have been asked to evacuate to avoid floods and the risk of landslides caused by torrential rain, authorities said on Thursday, according to Reuters. The warnings issued by the Japan Meteorological Agency came as a rain front moved west over the island. Authorities issued the most serious level 5 evacuation order in some parts of central Kyushu, warning residents to take immediate action to protect themselves. Video aired by public broadcaster NHK showed streets inundated with water in some areas and rivers close to overflowing as more than an average August of rainfall fell in just 48 hours. Japan's southwestern region of Kyushu had been lashed by torrential rains in July, causing flooding and mudslides in areas other than Kumamoto Prefecture. Parts of Fukuoka, Nagasaki and Saga prefectures had been affected. About 6,100 homes along the river were submerged, and roughly 1,060 hectares of land were estimated to have been flooded, the Infrastructure Ministry had reavealed, adding that 11 bridges had been destroyed. A number of communities were cut off due to severed roads, among other damage, with more than 80 schools closed in Kumamoto Prefecture. — Agencies
