Tokyo was hit by a torrential downpour Thursday evening during rush hour, with the Meteorological Agency warning residents to prepare for heavy rain, flooding and lightning.
The agency recorded 120 millimeters of rain in Suginami Ward and about 100 mm in Setagaya Ward at around 7 p.m. — enough to cause disasters. The agency only announces warnings of this kind when there is enough rain in a short period of time to trigger landslides or flooding.
Similar warnings were issued in neighboring Saitama, Kanagawa, Yamanashi, Gunma and Nagano prefectures.
“Cumulonimbus clouds have developed in some places, causing torrential rain and lightning,” the agency said on its website.
It warned of a “linear precipitation zone” capable of bringing localized downpours late Thursday. Such deluges could lead to disasters in the prefectures of Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba and Tokyo.
The weather agency is forecasting up to 150 mm of rain in the 24 hours through 6 p.m. Friday in the Kanto region, which includes Tokyo, and 100 mm for the Koshin region of Yamanashi and Nagano prefectures.
The Tokyo Fire Department received a call that a vehicle driving into a flooded underpass in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward was stalled, NHK reported, adding that first responders are trying to rescue people possibly trapped in the car.
In Shibuya, crowds struggled to enter and exit the JR station as water collected around the entrances.
Tokaido Shinkansen service was suspended due to the rain between Tokyo and Odawara in Kanagawa Prefecture.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government issued a warning for residents near the Meguro River, saying it was at risk of flooding. Just after 8 p.m., Shinagawa Ward said that water levels had returned to normal, and the warning was lifted at 8:45 p.m.
The Meguro River runs through Setagaya, Meguro and Shinagawa wards.
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