Record rains hit Japan’s Noto region, killing six

Record rains in central Japan's Noto region, still recovering from a major New Year's Day earthquake, killed at least one person, prompted evacuation orders for tens of thousands and caused blackouts for more than 6,000 households.

Footage from the area revealed the damage caused by record rainfall, with roads flooded and buildings surrounded by debris.

Six people, including four working on quake reconstruction, were missing, and calls for rescue were swamping the fire department.

Hourly rainfall hit record 121 mm in Wajima, while neighboring Suzu received 84.5 mm in an hour, also an all-time high.

Six people have died after a record amount of rain triggered flooding and landslides in a coastal region in Japan still recovering from a deadly earthquake earlier this year, according to local authorities.

The rain, which drenched Noto Peninsula in western Japan, washed away people and homes. In western and southern Japan, evacuations were ordered for more than 100,000 people, and the government issued some of the most severe emergency warnings for heavy rain. The warning was downgraded, and some people have started returning home.

Five people were killed in Wajima City, and another in nearby Suzu City, local officials said.

Both cities saw record-breaking rainfall; About 10.7 inches of rain fell in Wajima City in six hours, nearly double the previous record of about 5.5 inches, which was set in 2007. In Suzu City, 7.5 inches of rain fell in six hours, compared with the previous record of 5.2 inches, set in 1989.

The death in Suzu City occurred after a house was engulfed by a landslide. In Wajima City, two people died after a landslide hit a tunnel where earthquake recovery work was underway, and 10 others were rescued. Two more people died in landslides, and one corpse was pulled from a river.

Another two people were missing after being swept away by rivers, and four others are unaccounted for after their homes were swept away.