Four dead, six missing as Typhoon Dujuan triggers landslides in Japan

Four people have been confirmed dead, and six others remain missing in Japan’s eastern prefectures of Kanagawa and Chiba after Typhoon Dujuan brought torrential rain and triggered landslides, authorities said Tuesday, September 22.

The casualties were reported by 11 a.m. Tuesday in the two prefectures, both located near Tokyo. Dujuan is the 25th typhoon of the year.

The Kanagawa and Chiba prefectural governments have requested the deployment of Self-Defense Forces units as rescue efforts continue. Police officers and firefighters are searching for the missing.

In Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, a landslide crushed a house shortly before 2 p.m. Monday. Firefighters found a woman in her 60s inside the collapsed structure at around 9:30 p.m., but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Mud also flowed into homes in Yokosuka and neighbouring Miura, where several people remain unaccounted for. In Yokosuka, a couple in their 70s went missing, while in Miura, two women — one in her 20s and the other in her 30s — could not be located.

The typhoon also caused widespread disruption to transport services across the Tokyo metropolitan area. Despite improving weather conditions, railway services remained suspended Tuesday as operators prepared to inspect tracks and equipment following the heavy downpours.

Some parts of eastern Japan recorded more than 410 millimetres of rain over a two-day period, underscoring the severity of the storm.

On Sept. 20, more than 1.6 million people across Japan were advised to move to safer locations as authorities warned of the risk of flooding and landslides.

Typhoon Dujuan moved northeastward away from Japan after bringing torrential rain, flooding and landslides to the Kanto region, including areas around Tokyo.

By Tamilla Hasanova