Japan The body of people who did not evacuate when the Typhoon Hagibis was found was found on the first floor of houses in Fukushima Prefecture when the floodwaters receded.

Typhoon Hagibis dumped record rainfall in eastern and central Japan, causing the Abukuma River to overflow and its embankments on the Adatara tributary to burst. Residents of Motomiya City, Fukushima Prefecture, where the two rivers meet, were severely affected.

Even after the water receded from the city, the roads were covered with thick, slippery mud, trees, deformation signs and water gushing out from manholes.

At 7 pm on October 14, a 52-year-old man stood outside a two-story house in the city's Minamimachiura district, about 150 meters south of the Adatara River. He drove from his home in Kanagawa prefecture, south of Tokyo, to see here the situation of his mother, who lived alone in the house.

"My mother's name was not on the list at the evacuation center," he said worriedly. He decided to look for his mother after seeing the extent of damage in Fukushima Prefecture on TV.

At 8 am, a day care center employee brought the house key. Once inside, they found a 70-year-old woman's body on the first floor.

According to a neighbor, the old lady had trouble walking. Junko Takahashi, 69, who evacuated on the night of October 12, said that when she realized her neighbor was not at the evacuation center, she asked local government officials to come to the rescue. "But at the same time the water rose. They did not have time to check on other people nearby," she said regretfully.

Police arrived at a one-story house in Tatenokoshi district, about 150 meters north of the Adatara River, at around 13:00 on October 14 and found the body of a man in his 40s.

The owner of the dental clinic opposite the house said the dead man was the doctor who worked at his clinic. After the evacuation order was issued at about 22h25 on 12/10, he called to advise the doctor to leave the area. The doctor answered that water was rising to his ankles and the furniture had been washed away. The doctor then did not contact again.

"If there is an order to evacuate, it is better for everyone to follow rather than delay. Neither young nor old, there is no difference," the clinic owner said, his voice shaking with anger.

A 48-year-old barber in a two-story house next door said that when floodwaters flooded in, the first floor was flooded. He could hear the sound of windows breaking and the sound of furniture being pushed to the ceiling.

"I thought the sound of the rain was very quiet so I looked outside. At that time, I noticed a scary amount of water pouring into the neighborhood. I was so scared, it seemed like the water would rise to the second floor the next morning. Really. fortunately, a rescue boat came and saved me, "the barber said.

At least 68 people have died, 15 have been missing, and 200 have been injured after Hagibis. Japanese rescue forces today continue to race against time to find survivors.