Nagasaki on alert for heavy rainfall, authorities seek evacuation of 380,000 residents

Due to heavy rain that has significantly increased the risk of flooding and landslides, authorities in Nagasaki, Japan, have urged nearly 380,000 residents to leave their homes.

According to Japanese public broadcaster NHK, the second-highest alert level has been declared across the entire southern area of the city, while residents have been asked to stay away from high-risk areas.

The Japan Meteorological Agency announced that heavy rainfall is expected to continue in the southwest of Kyushu, the main island of the archipelago, raising concerns over rivers overflowing their banks and flooding in low-lying areas.

According to the warnings, the prefectures most exposed to the risk are Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki and Kumamoto, while heavy rain is also expected on the smaller island of Shikoku.

The meteorological agency also said that two tropical cyclones are forming in southern Japan.

In recent years, Japan has faced increasingly extreme rainfall, a phenomenon scientists link to climate change. In this island nation with pronounced mountainous terrain, landslides have also become noticeably more frequent.