Torrential rain continued Friday in central prefectures along the Sea of Japan, with the weather agency continuing to warn of landslides and floods in wider regions hit hard by downpours since the previous day.
Some areas in Fukui, Shiga and Shimane Prefectures saw record hourly precipitation, the Meteorological Agency said, with Minamiechizen in Fukui Prefecture logging 74 millimeters of rain in one hour Friday morning.
Heavy rains have so far caused a total of 45 rivers in nine prefectures to overflow, including in Aomori and Akita, the government said. It also reported 14 landslides across six prefectures and damage to transportation infrastructure, including two collapsed railway bridges.
Authorities including police were searching for two people in Iwate and Yamagata prefectures who have been missing since Thursday.
The local government in Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture, lifted evacuation orders for 6,000 residents issued after the Takatoki River overflowed and another river looked set to break its banks, local officials said.
A total of three people had been injured in Ishikawa and Niigata prefectures as of Friday morning, according to local officials.
The Ground Self-Defense Force was called in to provide disaster relief after part of Minamiechizen was cut off by flooding.
On Thursday, roughly 540,000 residents were urged to evacuate at one point due to heavy rain centering on northeastern and central parts of the country.
In the 24 hours through 6 p.m. Saturday, up to 60 mm of rain was forecast for the Hokuriku region along the Sea of Japan, up to 150 mm for the Tokai region in central Japan and 80 mm for the Kinki and Chugoku regions in the west.