Flooding, havoc as Typhoon Neoguri batters Japanese mainland
Several dead and many more injured as Typhoon Neoguri strikes the Japanese mainland with torrential rain and heavy winds causing deadly floods and mudslides
Typhoon Neoguri slammed into the Japanese mainland on Thursday bringing widespread flooding, ripping trees from their roots and leaving houses half-buried under mud, as tens of thousands were urged to seek shelter.
The storm, which has left several people dead and a string of damage in its wake, caused havoc in many small communities as residents struggled to keep waves of dirty water from destroying their homes.
“We are tying up cables and hoses ... and making sure cranes and booms don’t fall.”
More than 500 houses in several prefectures were flooded due to the typhoon and heavy rain, according to public broadcaster NHK, with about 130,000 households urged to seek shelter.
“Water kept gushing into the house no matter hard we tried to pour it out. We kept shoving out water all night,” said a woman in northern Yamagata Prefecture, where humid air brought by the typhoon caused huge downpours.
Officials warned over the risk of flooding and landslides as powerful winds and torrential rain batter the archipelago nation, with local authorities urging half a million people to seek shelter in Okinawa earlier in the week.
