OSAKA -- Torrential rains caused by a slow-moving tropical low-pressure system pounded the Kinki region from around midnight Tuesday through early Wednesday, flooding more than 1,700 buildings and causing major disruptions to traffic, mainly in the prefectures of Wakayama, Nara, and Osaka.
According to Osaka Prefecture, as of 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, over 1,532 structures were surrounded by water approaching floor level and 114 others were flooded above floor level in the cities of Osaka, Yao and Sakai.
The southern part of the city of Osaka, including Ikuno and Higashinari wards, were reportedly hardest hit.
Rains also played havoc with the traffic in the prefecture, forcing roads to close at six points. In the city of Shijonawate, a mudslide blocked traffic on Route 163. No injuries were reported.
In Higashiosaka, a landslide along a hill prompted a family of five living beneath it to voluntarily evacuate.
In neighboring Nara Prefecture, 107 houses were in floor-level floodwater and 12 others were inundated with water above that level.
An evacuation warning was issued to a total of nine households in the city of Ikoma and the town of Heguri in the prefecture, where the level of the Tatsuta River was abnormally high. Roads were closed at 15 points in the prefecture.
In Kochi Prefecture, 98 structures were in water approaching floor level.
Trains were temporarily canceled on the JR Wakayama and Kansai lines and ran at reduced speeds on the Nara and Katamachi lines. The entire Kintetsu Ikoma Line was temporarily closed.
According to the Osaka District Meteorological Observatory, the amount of precipitation recorded as of 11 a.m. Wednesday came to 322 mm on Mount Ikoma, 310 mm in Hikigawa, Wakayama Prefecture, and 149 mm in Nara.