At least eight people have died in eastern Japan due to record rainfall, with thousands stranded at Tokyo's Narita Airport. The rains, described as "unprecedented" by authorities, cut power to over 20,000 households in Chiba prefecture and prompted a level five emergency warning that was later downgraded to four. This severe weather is part of an unusually active typhoon season, with Japan's Meteorological Agency attributing the deluge to unstable atmospheric conditions caused by warm and cold air interacting. The heavy rain, which has already reached record levels, is expected to continue until late Friday.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-14,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
- Published
At least eight people have died as record rainfall pummelled eastern Japan and left thousands stranded at Tokyo's Narita Airport.
asserted
rainfall → publish → Airport
The rains, which authorities have described as "unprecedented", cut power to more than 20,000 households in Chiba prefecture.
asserted
authorities → describe → prefecture
Local authorities issued a level five emergency warning, its highest alert, on Thursday.
asserted
authorities → issue → Thursday
This was downgraded to a level four by Friday morning, but they continue to warn of landslide and flooding risks.
asserted
they → downgrade → risks
The deluge comes after a series of storms swept through Japan and neighbouring countries this week, in what meteorologists forecast to be an unusually active typhoon season.
asserted
meteorologists → come → Japan
Japan's Meteorological Agency said the most recent deluge was brought by warm, humid air flowing into the country's east that combined with cold air above to make atmospheric conditions extremely unstable.
asserted
conditions → say → air
The rains are expected to last through late on Friday.
asserted
rains → expect → Friday
"This case was an extremely unusual situation, even by Japan's historical weather standards," Chiba Governor Toshihito Kumagai told reporters on Friday morning.
asserted
Kumagai → tell → morning
"I have responded to many disasters in the past, but I have never experienced a case like this."
asserted
I → respond → this
Chiba, which sits right next to Tokyo, has logged more than 100mm of rain per hour since Thursday afternoon, authorities say.
asserted
authorities → sit → afternoon
This is about three times the average rainfall in August, and the highest volume of precipitation ever recorded in the country.
asserted
This → record → country
Authorities would prioritise saving lives and persist with rescue efforts, Kumagai added.
asserted
Kumagai → prioritise → efforts
At lest eight people have died, according to reports from public broadcaster NHK, Kyodo news agency and Asahi newspaper.
uncertain
people → die → NHK
Among those killed was a woman who died inside her car submerged on a flooded road, authorities said.
asserted
authorities → kill → road
Two others collapsed along the streets and later died.
asserted
others → collapse → streets
The Japan Meteorological Agency earlier described the situation as an "unprecedented level of heavy rain".
asserted
Agency → describe → rain
Several rail services remain suspended on Friday morning while some major highways are also shut.
asserted
highways → remain → morning
More than 100,000 households have been asked to evacuate on Thursday after the rain triggered landslides and power outages.
asserted
rain → ask → landslides
All flights were scheduled to operate normally on Friday, a spokesperson from Narita airport said.
asserted
spokesperson → schedule → airport
Flag carrier Japan Airlines said some of its flights may be delayed but that it does not expect any cancellations.
uncertain
it → say → cancellations
Passengers were stranded at metro stations, while around 1,800 people spent the night at the Chiba Prefectural Government building.
asserted
people → strand → building
A woman in Chiba's Ichikawa city told NHK the rain "happened all of a sudden so it was a complete surprise".
asserted
it → tell → sudden
"The power is out so I'm worried whether I can open my business in the next couple of days," she said.
asserted
she → open → days
Meanwhile in the Philippines, authorities have again shut schools and government offices are again shut in most of the country's north, citing the threat of floods.
asserted
offices → shut → floods
Earlier this week, Japan, the Philippines and China were hit by back-to-back storms – Dolphin, Chan-Hom and Peilou – churning across the region at the same time.
asserted
Japan → hit → time
Dolphin brought heavy rain to Japan's Okinawa island, cutting power to tens of thousands of buildings, toppling trees and cancelling flights.
asserted
Dolphin → bring → flights
Over the weekend, Chinese authorities evacuated more than a million people from their homes as Dolphin, the strongest typhoon to hit China so far this year, made landfall in the country's east.
asserted
Dolphin → evacuate → east
