Tokyo – Japan is fighting a forest fire that has damaged dozens of homes and forced hundreds of residents to evacuate in a coastal city of the Northeast.
The fire has burned around 5,190 forest acres in Ofunato since it began on Wednesday, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
The agency said at least 84 houses have been damaged, and more than 1,200 evacuated people. The fire has decreased in some areas. More than 2,000 troops and firefighters from all over the country have been deployed.
A man was found dead on a road on Thursday, and the authorities are examining whether death was linked to the fire, the agency said.
The regions of the Northeast, even Ofunato, have had their wider winter since 1946, when the Japan weather agency began to collect data.
