Thousands trapped by floods in Japan

The deluge continues: Debris piling up on a riverbank in Hita, Oita prefecture, Japan. — AFP

Kuma: Japanese emergency services and troops scrambled to reach thousands of homes cut off by catastrophic flooding and landslides that have killed dozens and caused widespread damage.

Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency said rising floodwater or roads damaged by landslides had blocked access to more than 3,000 households, mostly in the hardest-hit southwestern region of Kumamoto where fresh downpours were forecast.