Level 5 Emergency Warnings for landslides issued for Niijima, record rain lashes Oshima and Toshima, Japan
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued Level 5 Emergency Warnings for landslides in Niijima Village, Oshima Town and Toshima Village in Tokyo’s Izu Islands on September 7, 2026, after 24-hour rainfall totals broke records at multiple stations. Niijima recorded 485 mm (19.1 inches), while the main Oshima station received 581.5 mm (22.9 inches), its highest September total on record. Separately, Iwaki City in Fukushima Prefecture issued a citywide Level 4 Evacuation Instruction and listed one death in its final disaster report, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency (FDMA).
JMA recorded a maximum 24-hour rainfall total of 485 mm (19.1 inches) at Niijima by 09:40 JST (00:40 UTC) on September 7, exceeding the station’s previous all-time record of 333.5 mm (13.1 inches), set on July 1, 2021. Records at Niijima began in 2003.
JMA’s observation table, current to 21:00 JST (12:00 UTC) on September 7, identifies the figures as preliminary and subject to revision.
Among other Izu Island stations, all-time 24-hour records were broken at Oshima-Kitanoyama, with 455 mm (17.9 inches) by 14:50 JST (05:50 UTC); Toshima, with 384 mm (15.1 inches) by 15:00 JST (06:00 UTC); and Kozushima, with 375.5 mm (14.8 inches) by 10:50 JST (01:50 UTC).
JMA also recorded all-time 24-hour highs of 364.5 mm (14.4 inches) at Hachijojima and 333 mm (13.1 inches) at Yaemigahara. The main Oshima station measured 581.5 mm (22.9 inches), setting a September record but remaining below its all-time maximum of 824 mm (32.4 inches).
JMA issued a Level 5 Emergency Warning for landslides in Niijima Village at 04:15 JST on September 7 (19:15 UTC on September 6). Additional Level 5 Emergency Warnings were issued for Oshima Town at 12:30 JST (03:30 UTC) and Toshima Village at 15:00 JST (06:00 UTC).
JMA states that Level 5 indicates a life-threatening situation in which a disaster may already have occurred, and immediate protective action is required.
Heavy rain also produced a separate emergency in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, where JMA measured 199.5 mm (7.9 inches) in 24 hours at Yamada by 10:20 JST (01:20 UTC) on September 7. The total exceeded the station’s previous September record of 194 mm (7.6 inches) but remained below its all-time 24-hour record of 257 mm (10.1 inches).
Iwaki City issued a citywide Level 4 Evacuation Instruction at 08:45 JST on September 7 (23:45 UTC on September 6), after a Level 4 heavy-rain Urgent Warning took effect at 08:11 JST (23:11 UTC on September 6).
The city lifted the instruction at 11:44 JST (02:44 UTC), after flood and landslide danger decreased. Level 2 heavy-rain and landslide advisories remained in effect at that time.
Iwaki City’s final disaster report, issued at 15:00 JST (06:00 UTC) on September 7, listed one death but provided no further details.
In a separate national bulletin issued at 17:00 JST (08:00 UTC), FDMA reported that one person had been rescued from a submerged vehicle in Iwaki. The person’s medical condition and the incident’s relationship to the disaster remained under investigation; the available official documents do not establish whether this entry concerned the death listed by Iwaki City.
References:
1 24-hour rainfall observations — JMA — data current to 12:00 UTC on September 7, 2026
2 Heavy-rain, Typhoon No. 24 and frontal-rainfall impacts and fire-service response, Report No. 26 — FDMA — September 7, 2026, 08:00 UTC
3 September 6 heavy-rain information — Iwaki City — updated September 7, 2026
Feature image: Flooding in Yokkaichi, Japan, on September 11, 2025, used for representative purposes. Credit: りょん®︎1
Rishav Kothari is Editor-in-Chief of The Watchers, where he runs the newsroom and covers earthquakes, volcanoes, severe weather and space weather.
