July 5, 2021: Rescue workers in Japan searched for survivors among over 80 believed to be missing Monday.
Beaches on the outskirts of Atami are wrecked two days after the landslide, with houses destroyed and roads buried under mud and rocks. According to Mayor Sake Saito, 90 kilometers southwest of Tokyo, the official death toll in the city was three, while the number of missing people dropped to 80 from more than 113 on Monday morning.
The landslides are a reminder of the natural disasters – including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunami – that haunt Japan, where the capital Tokyo is to host the summer Olympics beginning this month.
By Monday, the number of rescue workers at the site of the disaster had risen to 1,500, officials said.
“We want to rescue as many victims … buried in the rubble as soon as possible,” Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told reporters, adding that police, firefighters and members of the military were doing all they could to aid the search.
Mayor Saito said the third confirmed victim was an 82 year old woman who succumbed to her injuries in hospital.
One 75-year-old evacuee said the house across from his had been swept away and the couple that lived there was unaccounted for. “This is hell,” he said.
Landslides on Saturday morning triggered a series of torrential downpours – some areas receive more than 24 hours of rain, usually throughout July. About 130 buildings were destroyed in Atami, a city of 36,000 people. Set on a steep slope that leads to the bay, Atami is a popular hotspot. Local media reported that water, mud and debris were believed to have flowed into the sea along the river for about 2 km.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsonobu Katu called on residents to be vigilant, noting that the saturated land had been weakened and that even light rain could be dangerous. Although Atami city spokesman Hiroki Onuma told Reuters that the rains in Atami had stopped for now, more forecasts were being made, raising the possibility of more landslides. “The situation is unpredictable,” he said.
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