Efforts to extinguish the flames of a forest fire near the city of Nanyo, Yamagata Prefecture, continued for a third day on Monday morning as the fire continued to spread closer to residential areas.
Helicopters deployed by the fire department and the Self-Defense Forces have worked to douse the fire that started around noon on Saturday.
So far, an evacuation order has been issued for two districts near Mt. Akiha as a precaution in case the fire spreads closer to homes. Although over 400 residents have been encouraged to flee to the three allocated evacuation areas, none were there as of Monday morning.
The fire had spread over a 135-hectare area as of noon on Monday, burning down one mountain cottage and a bathroom housed in a separate building, and resulting in the closure of several roads in the affected area. A man in his 70s was reported to have suffered mild burns on his legs and was taken to a hospital.
On Monday, six helicopters were deployed to extinguish the flames along with members of the Ground Self-Defense Force and firefighters, as the fire continued to spread.
According to weather forecasting company Weather News, the area had been experiencing very dry weather for the past few days.
However, humidity in the area had risen by Monday morning and light rain was forecast for the prefecture later in the day, which may help in efforts to bring the fire under control.
Japan has been experiencing higher-than-usual temperatures over the past few weeks, with last month being the warmest April in 130 years.
The Meteorological Agency has said that temperatures might remain above average through July as well.