15 July – The floods ultimately caused 218 deaths.

11 July – The near-final toll of the dramatic wave of rainfall that struck Japan stands at 179 dead. However, there is still no news of at least nine people. This is the worst disaster caused by a weather event ever recorded on the archipelago since 1982.

10 July – The latest official update from Japan reports 141 dead and ten people still missing.

5:15 pm – Japanese authorities have released a new provisional toll: confirmed victims stand at 124. Two further people have been located and "show no apparent signs of life". Around sixty people are still missing.

Update 9 July, 9:50 am – According to the latest official — though still provisional — figures provided by Japan's authorities, the number of victims caused by the rains and floods has now reached 112. Three more people are in a critical condition, while the missing still number 78. Hiroshima Prefecture is the worst affected, with 44 deaths.

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A wave of exceptional rainfall struck some western regions of Japan between Thursday 5 and Sunday 8 July. The precipitation was truly torrential, triggering floods, landslips, landslides and the deaths of at least 57 people, according to the latest provisional toll released by the Japanese authorities.

The death toll could, however, be far higher: state broadcaster Nhk reported at least 81 dead and 57 missing. Meanwhile, the government ordered the evacuation of more than two million people, though not everyone was able to comply with the order, as in many cases it proved impossible to leave their homes. "It's a race against time," admitted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during an emergency meeting with ministers in Tokyo.

Even the rescue workers deployed by the Japanese government are struggling

The worst-affected regions are those of Ehime, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Kochi, Gifu and Okayama. The rains triggered exceptional flooding of rivers, isolated numerous towns and trapped part of the population. Around 48,000 firefighters, police officers and military personnel were deployed to the area, but according to media reports they found themselves facing extremely complex conditions. Television footage shows people on rooftops waving sheets in an attempt to be spotted by rescue workers.

Japan's meteorological agency issued a maximum alert across the entire area and forecast enormous material damage. Thousands of homes were indeed submerged and several dozen destroyed by the force of the current.