Tuesday, 17 July 2012

Floods - now Japan


The latest country to face deadly floods is Japan, where at least 27 people have been killed.   Most of the deaths came on the southern island of Kyushu, where rain was falling at the rate of nearly four inches an hour, causing landslides and flash floods.

The authorities said that in the city of Yame, a 70 year old man inspecting his paddy fields was killed in a landslide while an 83 year old woman perished when her home was buried in mud.

About 100 homes were flooded in Kyoto, and there were worries about the famous Golden Pavilion (pictured) when the waters overflowed into the pond by which it stands, but the building escaped serious damage.

A quarter of a million evacuees are now beginning to return to their homes, though the Japan Meteorological Agency is warning that more heavy rain may be on the way.

*Here’s a report I did for BBC Television’s Top Gear programme back in 1993. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWSBD3ji6OE

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