2014 Hiroshima landslides
Location of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan
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| Date | 20 August 2014 |
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| Location | Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan |
| Also known as | 広島土砂災害(Hiroshima Dosha Saigai), 平成26年8月19日からの豪雨災害(Heisei 26-nen 8 tsuki 19-nichi Kara no Gōu Saigai) |
| Cause | Landslide due to heavy rain |
| Deaths | 74 (74 identified) |
| Non-fatal injuries | 69 |
| Missing | 0 |
Coordinates: 34°29′12″N 132°29′33″E / 34.48667°N 132.492553°E
On 20 August 2014, Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan was struck by a series of landslides following heavy rain. Seventy-four people are reported dead. According to the police, the dead include three boys aged two, three and eleven.
Following torrential rain in which a month's worth fell in a single day, several landslides were triggered near a mountain beside the city of Hiroshima.Asakita-ku was the hardest-hit ward. It received 217.5 millimetres (8.56 in) of rain from 1:30 am to 4:30 am causing two landslides which occurred between 4 am and 6 am. Hiroshima issued an evacuation advisory at 4:15 am. Mayor Kazumi Matsui confessed regret over the advisory's late issuance and recommended that the city study the incident to improve the process.
Under the law which took effect in 2001, prefectural governments and other authorities must carry out on-site research to designate areas for which evacuation plans and hazard maps will be created. In Hiroshima there are about 32,000 possibly dangerous areas, the highest of all 47 prefectures.
As of 20 September 2014, at least 70 people have died. One of the dead was a rescue worker killed after the hillside collapsed a second time. Two children, aged 2 and 11, died in a mudslide in Asaminami-ku around 3:20am. The number of casualties was initially feared to be 100. The number missing was reported to be 52 on the morning of 22 August, but in the afternoon it was revised to 47, then to 46 on the morning of the 23rd, and later on the morning of the same day to 43. On 9 September, police announced that they had found one body, which has since been identified. Another body was found on 18 September, which has since then been also identified.
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