Floods kill at least 6 in Japan on earthquake-battered peninsula

Heavy rain that triggered floods and landslides on a Japanese peninsula recovering from an earthquake this year killed at least six people, local media reported on Monday.

Public broadcaster NHK and other outlets said six were dead, while a fire department official said that one had died and five were “in a state of cardio-respiratory arrest”, a term used in Japan before a feared death can be confirmed by a doctor.

The regional government in Ishikawa on the Sea of Japan coast said two were missing and the status of eight people was unknown.

Heavy rain pounded Ishikawa from Saturday, with more than 540 millimetres (21 inches) recorded in the city of Wajima over 72 hours, the heaviest continuous rain since comparative data became available.

The region is still reeling from a magnitude-7.5 quake at the start of the year, which toppled buildings, triggered tsunami waves and sparked a major fire.