Record rainfall left thousands of travellers stranded at Tokyo’s Narita airport on Friday after flooding disrupted transport, cut power to homes and killed at least four people.
More than 360 millimetres of rain fell within 24 hours in parts of Chiba prefecture, which borders Tokyo, flooding roads and railways during one of Japan’s busiest holiday weeks.
Authorities confirmed four deaths, including one person who was trapped in a submerged vehicle. Another person remains missing.
Soldiers have been deployed to the affected areas to assist with relief efforts.
“This case was an extremely unusual situation,” Chiba Governor Toshihito Kumagai told reporters on Friday morning. “I have responded to many disasters in the past, but I have never experienced a case like this.”
More than 22,000 households remained without power at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, according to utility provider Tokyo Electric Power.
Chiba city was among the worst-hit areas, with hundreds of people spending the night under foil blankets at government buildings being used as temporary evacuation centres.
The flooding also disrupted transport to Narita airport, leaving about 7,000 people stranded, an airport spokesperson said.
All flights are scheduled to operate normally on Friday. Japan Airlines said some flights could be delayed, but no cancellations were expected.
Several major highways in Chiba were closed, forcing drivers to use alternative routes and causing heavy traffic, highway operator NEXCO East said.
Several rail services also remained suspended on Friday morning, although some trains connecting Narita with Tokyo had resumed operations.
The partial restoration helped ease congestion at the international transport hub.
Hundreds of passengers spent the night inside the airport terminal, where staff distributed blankets, water and snacks, footage from public broadcaster NHK showed.
“We are never going to forget this trip,” an American traveller stranded at the airport with his family told NHK.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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