Tokyo, July 3: The Japanese authorities have on Wednesday called on more than millions of its people to evacuate the southernmost Kyushu island to seek shelter in the safer areas and evacuation centre as soon as possible as heavy torrential rains threatened to blow widespread landslides.
Few areas of Kyushu have almost received up to 1,000 mm of rain since Friday – equivalent to the amount of rain usually falls in a whole month of July, according to Japan’s broadcaster NHK, in fact, the experts have forecast up to 300 mm additional rainfall is due on Thursday evening in some regions.
The NHK reported the evacuation orders were issued for more than 1.02 million citizens of Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures at the Kyushu’s southern tip.
Analysis on torrential rains in Kyushu https://t.co/uOOnOn4F0L
— NHK WORLD News (@NHKWORLD_News) July 3, 2019
At least 930,000 more were already advised to leave the area and seek shelters in evacuation centre but, there were no data released immediately showing the numbers who had evacuated yet.
In an evacuation centre, a woman told NHK, “I live alone next to a river, and it’s scary to think of water rising.” Another woman said the rainfall volume was “terrible”.
Japanese authorities have directed more than 1 million residents in parts of the southern main island of Kyushu to evacuate to designated shelters as heavy rains batter the region, prompting fears of landslides and widespread flooding. https://t.co/KECoug1sAJ
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 3, 2019
In the capital, Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said people should “take steps to protect their lives, including early evacuation,” adding he ordered the armed forces to prepare themselves for anytime rescue operations.