Torrential rain in Japan causes landslides and costs lives of 50

Rains, exceeding all historical records since 1976, have caused massive landslides last week in the outskirts of Hiroshima, urging the evacuation of residential areas and rising the death toll to 50 people so far, with many more reported missing. About 600 emergency personnel were already in the area, however forecasts of more rain made rescue efforts even more difficult. The video below shows the extent of the damage. 

The torrential rain that started falling last Wednesday in the Hiroshima prefecture in Japan - making this August the rainiest month since the first records first started being kept - led to heavy landslides burrying dozens of homes under debris, mud and rock.  Evacuation orders were issued shortly after the first mountainsides collapsed and forced about 4,000 people to temporarily abandon their homes under the fear of further landslides as a result of the additional rain forecast in the area. Overall evacuation orders remained in effect for about 160,000 people in the wider area.

Rescue crews immediately jumped into the affected areas to search for survivors, avoiding the use of heavy machinery so far and digging with light equipment and bare hands. Their efforts were interrupted on Thursday night due to the high risk of additional landslides in an area consisting of decomposed granite. According to geologists, the rock, which is often quarried for driveways and paths, is particulalry weathered and fractured, hence becomes especially unstable when waterlogged.

According to meteorologists, rainfall was expected to continue until Saturday evening in western Japan, further increasing the risk of additional landslides. Hiroshima prefecture is particularly susceptible to landslides with approximately 32,000 areas designated with a high risk of landslide occurrence by the government.