Torrential rains in central Japan demonstrate the growing impact of climate change on the archipelago

Seven dead, six missing and extensive damage. Such is the high price of the floods and landslides caused by record rainfall on 21 and 22 September on the Noto Peninsula (central Japan). Nine months after the powerful earthquake that severely affected the region, the region has suffered a new catastrophe, this time due to climate change, the effects of which are increasingly visible in the archipelago, which is reluctant to seriously address its causes.

“I never thought I would suffer two disasters in one year. It is disheartening”Etsushi Funamoto, who lost his mother and brother in the Sept. 1 earthquake, told public broadcaster NHK.^Ahem January and saw his barely rebuilt house submerged by water.

The peninsula’s main city, Wajima, received 498.5 mm of rain in 48 hours. Further north, Suzu recorded 394 mm. Historic for these cities, these levels represent more than double the normal levels for the month of September.

A total of 1,088 residents had to leave their homes and 56 villages remained isolated on September 23. Nine temporary housing complexes for victims of the 7.6-magnitude earthquake that killed 378 people on September 1^Ahem January, were flooded. Many people evacuated after the earthquake had to move to other shelters. Around 5,200 households have suffered power cuts and water supplies have been interrupted in many areas.

The severity of the floods and landslides is partly due to the earthquake. The embankments were weakened and could not withstand the violence of the rains. The soil that has become soft is more prone to landslides.

The hottest summer

“I asked the government to respond to the needs of local authorities, taking into account that we are still in the process of rebuilding after the earthquake of 1^Ahem January “Prime Minister Fumio Kishida responded from New York, where he is on a trip. Ishikawa Prefecture, where the peninsula is located, requested help from the Self-Defense Forces.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), the heavy rains are the result of the meeting of warm, humid currents blowing from the south, at the edge of the Pacific anticyclone, and currents from the north, at the edge of a high pressure system installed on the continent. At the same time, the temperature of the sea surface surrounding the archipelago remains high, favouring the evaporation of water.

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