This archive report was first published on 4 July 2020.
Published on July 4, 2020, the Japanese weather agency issued the highest emergency level of heavy rain warnings to Kumamoto and Kagoshima on Kyushu island.
Television footage showed vehicles submerged in water at car parks near a flooding river, while several bridges were reportedly washed away.
Rescuers were searching for three people in Kumamoto after a landslide buried their house, according to public broadcaster NHK.
"We have issued evacuation orders after record heavy rain," said Toshiaki Mizukami, an official of Kumamoto prefecture.
"We strongly urge people to take action to protect their lives as it's still raining quite heavily," he told AFP.
Local authorities have asked troops to join rescue operations, NHK said, with 75,000 residents in Kumamoto and Kagoshima ordered to evacuate their homes.
Some train services, including Shinkansen bullet train operations, have been suspended in the region.
Japan is currently in its rainy season, which often causes floods and landslides and prompts local authorities to issue evacuation orders.
No casualties or injuries have so far been reported.
