24 Unaccounted for in Japanese Landslide, Mayor Says

Rescue workers were searching Tuesday morning for 24 people whom authorities haven’t been able to reach in the aftermath of a landslide in the Japanese resort city of Atami, the city’s mayor said. At first, 147 people were unaccounted for. After city officials had reduced that list to 60 residents, they released it to the public, and most of the residents responded. They were either elsewhere when the landslide hit or were able to safely evacuate, Mayor Sakae Saito said. Four people, however, have been found dead, while 25 have been rescued.  Roughly 1,500 emergency workers were digging Monday through the rubble in a neighborhood of the central seaside city, searching for survivors. Rescuers conduct a rescue and search operation at a mudslide site at Izusan district in Atami, west of Tokyo, Japan, July 6, 2021. (Kyodo/via Reuters)Saturday’s landslide was triggered by several days of torrential rain, which forecasters said was more rainfall than Atami usually records for the entire month of July.  As many as 130 homes and buildings were destroyed. Atami is a resort city, 90 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Tokyo, known for its hot springs. It sits above a bay on a steep slope. Heavy rains are expected elsewhere in Japan, and officials are urging people in areas at risk of landslides to use caution. The disaster comes just days before the opening ceremonies of the Tokyo Olympics, which has been overshadowed by the rising number of COVID-19 infections across the nation.   This report includes information from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
 

your ad here


leave a reply