Record rainfall brought by a typhoon has flooded many areas of northern Japan, leaving at least 11 people dead and 3 missing.
Typhoon Lionrock made landfall on the Pacific coast of Iwate Prefecture on Tuesday evening. It was downgraded to a severe tropical storm as it crossed northeastern Japan.
On Wednesday morning, police surveying flood damage in the town of Iwaizumi, Iwate Prefecture, found 9 bodies at a care home for the elderly.
Police are working to identify the victims, who are all said to be aged and believed to be the residents of the home.
Another elderly man was found dead on the bank of a river that runs through the town.
In Kuji City in Iwate, the body of an elderly woman was found inside a house that was flooded when a nearby river overflowed.
3 people were swept away by rivers and remain missing in Hokkaido.
Japan’s land and infrastructure ministry says 17 rivers in Hokkaido, Iwate and Aomori prefectures had overflowed their banks as of 5:00 AM on Wednesday.
A number of communities have been left isolated by flooding and road collapse.
Source: NHK Image: ANN
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