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| Thursday, 15 July 2004 |
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Six dead after torrential rains hit Japan SANJO, Japan, Wednesday (Reuters) Torrential rains that flooded city streets and set off landslides in northern Japan have killed at least six people and forced thousands to evacuate, with more storms forecast on Wednesday. Around 18,000 households were forced to evacuate in Niigata and Fukushima prefectures at one point on Tuesday and local authorities asked the military to help with rescue work, Kyodo news agency said. Over 431 mm (17 inches) of rain had fallen in some parts of the region since Monday night, causing landslides that killed two people in Niigata prefecture. An elderly man died when his house flooded and two elderly women were found dead, one in a flooded field and another near local government offices in Nakanoshima, where torrents of water had rushed through parts of the town on Tuesday after a river burst its banks. "I was really shocked. The water was up to our chests in no time. We tried to flee but we couldn't," one elderly woman said after being rescued, damp hair plastered to her forehead. Television footage showed residents waiting stoically on tiled rooftops for rescue or waving from windows, above flooded streets where cars were overturned. |
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