Chiba Floods: Eight dead as Japan records its heaviest rainfall ever

Record rainfall has killed at least eight people in eastern Japan and stranded thousands at Tokyo’s Narita Airport, with authorities describing the deluge as “unprecedented,” according to the BBC.

Chiba prefecture logged over 100mm of rain per hour, cutting power to more than 20,000 households and prompting a level-five emergency warning, later downgraded to level four. Chiba Governor Toshihito Kumagai called it “an extremely unusual situation,” even by Japan’s historical standards.

More than 100,000 households were asked to evacuate as landslides and flooding risks persist, with rains expected to continue through Friday.