1 Dead, 1 with No Sign of Life in Downpour-Hit Chiba

Tokyo, Aug. 13 (Jiji Press)–One person died and another is in a state of cardiopulmonary arrest due to torrential rain that hit the eastern Japan prefecture of Chiba on Thursday afternoon. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued Level 5 emergency heavy rain warnings for many municipalities in the prefecture east of Tokyo at 7:30 p.m. on the day. Linear precipitation zones formed intermittently in the prefecture, and the agency warned residents to be alert for flooding of low-lying areas, swollen rivers and landslides. The Level 5 emergency heavy rain warnings were issued for 18 cities–Chiba, Ichihara, Sakura, Yotsukaido, Yachimata, Inzai, Shiroi, Ichikawa, Funabashi, Matsudo, Narashino, Kashiwa, Yachiyo, Abiko, Kamagaya, Togane, Mobara and Oamishirasato–and the town of Nagara. Level 5 emergency landslide warnings were issued for the city of Chiba, the capital of the prefecture, and Ichihara at 9:55 p.m. According to the Ichikawa fire department and the Chiba prefectural government, there was an emergency call around 6:55 p.m. reporting that a man was floating on a flooded road in the city. Firefighters and others rushed to the site and found an unconscious man believed to be in his 60s. He was confirmed dead later. In Kashiwa, a woman in her 70s is in a state of cardiopulmonary arrest after being trapped in a vehicle on a flooded road, according to the city’s fire department. A landslide occurred in Ichikawa, but no one was injured, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said. The government set up a liaison office the crisis management center at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo. At a press conference in Tokyo, Takuya Hosomi, head of the meteorological agency’s Forecast Division, said that rain clouds stayed over Chiba after warm and moist air flowed into the prefecture and hit north winds. “It is highly likely that some sort of disaster has already occurred,” he said, urging people in the affected areas to ensure their safety immediately. Due to the torrential rain, services were suspended on train lines including the Sobu and Keiyo lines of East Japan Railway Co., or JR East. Some sections on the Tokyo Gaikan Expressway and the Ken-o Expressway were closed to traffic. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]