Nagoya to receive disaster relief after torrential rain, with leaks reported at Asian Games venues

Nagoya faced major flooding after about 104 millimeters of rain fell in one hour, forcing authorities to issue the highest flood warning for the Shonai River and urge residents in several wards to seek safety.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a Level 5 warning for the river, which runs through Gifu and Aichi prefectures. The city government called on people in parts of Chikusa, Moriyama and Meito wards to take immediate action. Four people sustained minor injuries, while around 2,700 residents moved to evacuation shelters.

The downpour flooded roads and railway tracks and disrupted public transport. City subway services stopped temporarily, JR Chuo Line tracks were inundated, and streets in Nagoya’s busy Sakae district were covered by ankle-deep water. A woman in her 50s from Gifu, visiting the city with her ninth-grade daughter to tour a high school, said they might need to spend the night at a hotel while waiting in a long taxi line.

Rainwater also leaked into several venues for the Asian Games, scheduled to open on Sept. 19. Nagoya is in Aichi Prefecture, where Toyota Motor Corp. is headquartered.

The rain halted Tokyo-bound Tokaido Shinkansen trains between Okayama and Tokyo, and suspended outbound services between Tokyo and Nagoya. Sanyo Shinkansen services were also partly suspended. Both lines resumed at about 5:15 p.m., operators said. The weather agency warned that linear rainbands had formed over parts of Aichi and Gifu and urged vigilance as heavy rain was expected from western to northeastern Japan.

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We may have to stay at a hotel tonight