Monday, October 14, 2019
The death toll in Japan rose to 33 due to the ferocious typhoon, helicopters, boats and thousands of troops were deployed across the country to rescue the stranded people in flooded homes on Sunday.
On Saturday evening Typhoon Hagibis made landfall south of Tokyo which battered the central and norther Japan with torrents of rain and powerful gusts of wind.
On Sunday the typhoon was down graded to a tropical storm. More than 14 rivers across the nation had flooded with some spilling out in more than one spot.
As per the Tokyo Fire Department a woman in her 70s was accidentally dropped 40 meters (131 feet) to the ground while she was being transported into a rescue helicopter in Iwaki city in Fukishima prefecture.
A conference was held by the Department official to apologise by bowing deeply and long as per the Japanese custom. They acknowledged that the woman was not been strapped in properly.
On Sunday, 14 people died, 11 people went missing and 187 were injured due to the typhoon. The government’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency mentioned that 1, 283 homes were flooded and 517 were damaged, partially or totally.
News footage showed a rescue helicopter hovering in a flooded area in Nagano prefecture where an embankment of the Chikuma River broke, and streams of water were continuing to spread over residential areas. The chopper plucked those stranded on the second floor of a home submerged in muddy waters.
Aerial footage showed tractors at work trying to control the flooding and several people on a rooftop, with one waving a white cloth to get the attention of a helicopter. Nearby was a child’s school bag. In another part of Nagano, rows of Japan’s prized bullet trains, parked in a facility, were sitting in a pool of water.
A section of the city of Date in Fukushima prefecture was also flooded, with only rooftops of residential homes visible in some areas, and rescuers paddled in boats to get people out. Parts of nearby Miyagi prefecture were also underwater.
The Tama River, which runs by Tokyo, overflowed its banks, flooding homes and other buildings in the area.
Among the reported deaths were those whose homes were buried in landslides. Other fatalities included people who got swept away by raging rivers.
Early Sunday, Suga said that some 376,000 homes were without electricity, and that 14,000 lacked running water.
Tokyo Electric Power Co. said late Sunday that more than 66,000 homes were still without power. Tohoku Electric Co. said 5,600 homes still lacked electricity, in the northern prefectures of Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima. Both utilities said they were working to restore power.
Several train services in the Tokyo area resumed early in the morning, while others restarted later.
Ruling party politician Fumio Kishida said the government would do its utmost in rescue operations, including making sure that those who moved to shelters were taken care of.
He acknowledged that Japan’s power grids need to be strengthened so people in disaster areas can rely on timely information.
As a precautionary measure the Rugby World Cup match between Namibia and Canada which as scheduled for Sunday in Kamaishi in northern Japan was cancelled. Japan played Scotland to a win as Scheduled Sunday evening and the matches on Saturday was cancelled.
Tokyo stored along with stores and amusement parks had also closed.
The train stations ad bustling street of Tokyo were deserted as the Typhoon bore down on Saturday with heavy rains and strong winds.
Life was returning to normal on Sunday and flight got grounded from Tokyo airports were being resumed.
In coastal towns the evacuation centres were set up and tens of thousands were seeking shelter. Evacuation warnings were issued to more than 6 million people.
Tags: japan, Typhoon Hagibis
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
