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Published 16:30 IST, October 28th 2019

Japan to spend $6.5m for disaster relief, but faces labor shortage

Japan agreed to spend $6.5 million for disaster relief and may request more money to finance the construction. However, it is facing a severe labor shortage.

Reported by: Bhavya Sukheja
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Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has reportedly agreed to spend $6.5 million for disaster relief and may request more money to finance construction after Typhoon Hagibis tore through much of the country's main island. Japan was hit by one of the worst typhoons in decades, killing 79 with seven still missing. Though Japan is spending millions on rescue, repair, and clean-up workout, however, it is facing a severe labor shortage. 

Typhoon Hagibis led to 71 rivers burst 140 levees and other embankments over vast areas from Nagano. The job of fixing the damage is vast but construction is one of the most squeezed industries in the nation as the supply of construction workers has reportedly slumped by 28% from its peak in the later 1990s to around 5 million. The president of the six-man construction firm Suzuki Kenzai Kogya told an international media outlet that they are absolutely short of workers and their main priority is to restore lifelines, repair roads and cover the damaged roofs with blue plastic sheets. He further added that there is no time for removing the heaps of rubble piled up due to the last two typhoons. Some construction companies are also flying drones over construction sites for three-dimensional measuring that will help design, plan and implement projects. 

READ: Floods, Mudslides From Heavy Rain In Japan Kill At Least 10

READ: Japan: One Dead, Two Missing In Landslides Weeks After Typhoon

Evacuation advisory issued

In recent events, about 50,000 people in Sagamihara, a city southwest of Tokyo that was hit hard by flooding after the typhoon, were advised to evacuate. As per reports, six were killed, including a family of two who was swept away in their car. Evacuation advisories were also issued for some 10,000 in Chiba prefecture, just east of Tokyo, which was battered by heavy winds from Typhoon Faxai in September. The areas reportedly remained without power for weeks before being hit by rains due to Hagibis.

Thousands were set to be evacuated from areas surrounding Tokyo on October 25 as torrential rains after Typhoon Hagibis led to flooding and landslides in eastern Japan. Earlier, 82 people were killed due to Hagibis' destruction in central and eastern Japan with heavy rains and high winds. Besides, over a dozen are missing and 300 or more have been reported to be injured. The evacuation advisory was put into place as authorities warned of further landslides and flooding, especially in areas hit by levee breaks that are yet to be repaired.

(With agency inputs)

READ: Japan: 60,000 People To Evacuate As Country Preps For Heavy Rainfall

READ: Japan Trade Minister Resigns Amid Election Law Violation Scandal

Updated 21:02 IST, October 28th 2019

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