I posted earlier this evening about warnings that have been issued for Kumamoto.　I’d like to add two little footnotes.

  1. The areas that have received warnings about possible landslides resulting from heavy rain are near Minamata and Hitoyoshi (both in the southern part of the prefecture).
  2. The English phrase that is used is “ground loosening” while that in Japanese is 土砂災害 (dosha saigai). I’ve checked in various online dictionaries and this is usually translated “landslide disaster”: http://ejje.weblio.jp/content/土砂災害 Sure, if the ground loosens up you are more like to get a landslide but “loose ground” sounds a lot less alarming than “landslide disaster.” It seems very odd to me that a phrase that sounds more like a euphemism than a warning would be used in regard to a possible landslide.

– KIrk

P.S. English page is here: http://www.jma.go.jp/en/warn/349_table.html Japanese page is here: http://www.jma.go.jp/jp/warn/349_table.html

One more thought: I think “ground loosening” is probably a translation of “地盤がゆるい” (jiban ga yurui). I’ve heard this expression on the news but it’s usually followed by warnings about what that means: You need be wary of 土砂災害 (landslide disasters).