Photo/Illutration Naomi Nishimura wipes away tears as she speaks on behalf of bereaved families at a memorial service in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, on July 4. (Minako Yoshimoto)

Memorial events to pray for the victims of torrential rains were held across western and southern Japan on July 4.

Heavy rains that deluged western Japan from July 6 through July 8, 2018, caused flooding and landslides across the region, leaving more than 300 people dead or missing, including those who died in the aftermath, in Hiroshima, Okayama and 12 other prefectures.

In Saka, Hiroshima Prefecture, which was devastated by landslides set off by torrential rain, 20 residents died as a direct result of the disaster or from the stress of being an evacuee.

Sixty-four bereaved families and town officials attended a ceremony held at a memorial park in Saka’s Koyaura district on July 4, ahead of the disaster's third anniversary.

Takeshi Ideshita, 52, a company employee who lost his parents, both 74, in the landslides spoke on behalf of the bereaved families at the event.

“Our pain and sorrows will never go away even after three years have passed,” said Ideshita, who lives in the town. “It’s our duty to pass on the memory of the disaster to the next generation and live with hope.”

He told reporters after the ceremony that the massive rain-triggered landslide that occurred on July 3 in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, reminded him of the disaster three years ago. He called on people to flee quickly when they are in imminent danger to protect their lives.

Another memorial service was held on July 4 at Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, where 21 people died after the Kumagawa river overflowed following torrential rains that devastated the Kyushu region, mainly the southern part of Kumamoto, exactly a year ago.

The rains killed 79 people in five prefectures in Kyushu, including those recognized as having died due to psychological and other stress caused by the disaster. Two people are still listed as missing.

Hitoyoshi city and Kumamoto Prefecture, which jointly organized the event, limited the attendance to 30 as a precaution against the novel coronavirus.

Naomi Nishimura, 52, a resident of Kita-Kyushu who grew up in Hitoyoshi and lost her parents in the heavy rains, spoke as the representative of the bereaved families.

“I lost my parents and their house in my hometown, but I’ll never give up,” she said. “We’ll reconstruct our beautiful city blessed with natural and human resources.”

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