The death count from a disastrous typhoon that created chaos in central and northern Japan climbed this Tuesday. The number of deaths tied to Typhoon Hagibis had climbed to 53 and was expected to rise, as at least another nine people are presumed dead. The Government pledged to do the utmost for the safety and rescue of those missing or those who had to evacuate, said the Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe. “We put the people’s lives first,” he added.
Although the life in Tokyo is nearly back to normal, hard-hit areas like Nagano, Fukushima are still suffering from its destruction. Almost 110,000 people joined in the search and recovery mission for people who trapped in mudslide. Nagano, a city that once hosted the Winter Olympics, were in ruin; the river that runs through the city breached its levee, destroying homes, flipping cars and toppling power lines, reported by Ramy Inocencio, a CBS News correspondent.
Immobilized Hi-tech trains
Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet train services connecting Tokyo and Kanazawa in the central north were reduced because of flooding of six trains at its railyard in Nagano, said the West Japan Railway Co. The trains are in a muddy pool that prevents it from functioning. Even though the operator’s preparedness should be investigated later, the current priority should be given in getting the trains out of water.
The sight of these crippled extremely innovative Hi-tech trains’ powerlessness of Japan against these tremendous natural forces. It also showed how vulnerable Japan is in this precarious era of climate change.
Toshitaka Katada, a disaster expert and professor at the University of Tokyo said that, “Weather conditions in Japan up to now have been relatively moderate.” Those days are over, and Japan’s readiness for disasters, still based on data collected decades ago, hasn’t kept up with the times. “Damage gets multiplied when people are overly confident about their safety,” quoted Katada
Picture source: cbsnews
