Jul 08 (NHK) - In southwestern Japan, emergency crews are searching for survivors and assessing the damage after days of torrential rain.
The extreme weather has left dozens of people dead on the island of Kyushu. Weather officials are asking people to remain on alert for landslides and rivers bursting their banks.
In Oita Prefecture, a major river overflowed in the city of Hita. Rescuers are searching for a woman in her 70s after her home was washed away. Authorities say more flooding is expected in several cities along the river.
In Fukuoka, Self-Defense Forces personnel rescued hundreds of residents in the city of Omuta. They had been stranded for hours after houses and other buildings were flooded.
A woman said, "t was scary... the water was up to my neck."
Another woman said, "The water came up to my waist. I was using all of my strength to wade through, but was almost swept away."
Rescue crews in the city found an elderly woman in a submerged house. She was later confirmed dead.
But the worst-hit prefecture is Kumamoto, where more than 50 people have died.
Rivers have flooded in a dozen places. An embankment along the Kuma river has collapsed, and a bridge has been swept away.
Many train and express bus services have been suspended across the region.
Thousands of homes are without electricity.
