A massive landslide engulfed houses in a tourist town in Oita Prefecture early Wednesday morning, leaving one person dead and five others unaccounted for and severing a road leading to the site, local authorities said.
Landslides are often triggered by heavy rain or earthquakes, but none were reported in the area at the time, leading geological experts to attribute the landslide to weathering of the bedrock.
In a news conference on Wednesday evening, a team made up of such experts and government officials said the landslide was triggered by a crack on the surface of the bedrock caused by weathering, adding that they believed underground water had limited effect.