Heavy rain continues in quake-hit region on Sea of Japan coast

Bullet train services on the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line were halted for more than five hours between Nagano and Kanazawa stations, operator JR West said, as heavy rain started pounding parts of Ishikawa Prefecture on Wednesday.

The prefectural capital of Kanazawa logged a record-high 148 millimeters of rainfall in the three hours ending around 5 a.m., according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Some houses in the city suffered flooding around their foundations, while roads in at least 19 locations were inundated. Some prefectural roads have been partially closed, and evacuation centers have been set up in Kanazawa, local governments said.

The agency said a band of clouds was detected over Kaga in Ishikawa, a region in central Japan where more than 600 people were killed in the Noto Peninsula earthquake on New Year's Day 2024.

A low-pressure system is moving northeast over the Sea of Japan, the agency said. Its front is expected to shift southward through Friday and remain over areas from eastern to western Japan into Saturday.

The agency said some regions may see heavy rainfall and thunderstorms through Friday as warm, humid air flows toward the low-pressure system. Atmospheric conditions are expected to be extremely unstable across a wide area from northern to western Japan.

Rainfall totals in the 24 hours through 6 a.m. Friday are forecast to reach up to 150 millimeters in the Tohoku region, north of Hokuriku, and in the northern part of Kyushu in southwestern Japan. Hokuriku is projected to receive 120 mm.

As earlier reported, Typhoon Nari was expected to approach areas near Tokyo and northeastern Japan mid-July, with the weather agency warning of strong winds, high waves and landslides.