A 65-year-old man and an 8-year-old girl drowned Saturday morning off a beach in Kashiwazaki, Niigata Prefecture, police said.
The man was identified as Tsuneo Kobayashi, a resident of Matsumoto, and the girl as Mizuho Murayama of Okaya, both in Nagano Prefecture.
Mizuho's 10-year-old brother, Katsuki, was also swept away but was rescued, the police said.
The two children went to the beach with their grandmother and her friend, Kobayashi.
They were swimming in shallow water but were swept away. They drowned some 150 to 200 meters from shore, the police said.
A woman who was nearby saw them drowning and called the police. About 20 to 40 minutes later, rescue team members brought the three to shore and sent them to a nearby hospital. The man and the girl were pronounced dead at the hospital.
The boy survived because he was hanging onto a float ring, the police said.
Meanwhile, in Fukuoka Prefecture, a 42-year-old man was listed in critical condition after almost drowning off a beach in Shima, Fukuoka Prefecture, according to police.
At around 4:30 p.m., Seiko Kawaji, of Sawara, Fukuoka Prefecture, was rescued by a person who was swimming nearby and taken to a hospital, police said.
Kawaji was at the beach with his family. He went into the water after drinking alcohol.