Hello and welcome to today’s news from Japan Daily News on April 15th, 2024. In today’s news, we have two significant stories to cover. First, there has been a series of cases of ‘undeveloped flowers’ in the premium grape variety, Shine Muscat, in grape-producing regions across Japan, such as Nagano and Yamagata prefectures. The flowers are not blooming properly, and the grapes are deformed, a condition known as ‘undeveloped flowers.’ The national research institute has analyzed the issue and found that it is likely caused by poor drainage and imbalanced soil nutrients.

Moving on to our second story, due to heavy rain warnings, the city of Nanchu in Okinawa has issued an evacuation alert for all residents, especially the elderly and those with disabilities. The alert was announced at 6:15 am today, urging people to evacuate to safer locations.

In other news, a tragic incident occurred in Amami City, Kagoshima Prefecture, where a 4-year-old girl was fatally hit by a car on a prefectural road. The police are currently investigating the details of the accident.

Remembering the devastating Kumamoto earthquake that occurred 8 years ago, the residents of Mashiki Town, Kumamoto Prefecture, observed a memorial by lighting paper lanterns. The town experienced two instances of seismic intensity 7 during the earthquake. The lanterns were lit to commemorate the lives lost.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has announced plans to consider new measures, including the construction of new seawalls, in Suzu City and Noto Town in Ishikawa Prefecture. These areas were severely affected by tsunamis during the Noto Peninsula earthquake.

In weather news, a wide area spanning from western to northern Japan experienced clear skies and rising temperatures. Hita City in Oita Prefecture recorded a temperature of 29.8 degrees Celsius, making it a summer-like day with temperatures exceeding 25 degrees Celsius in various regions.

Lastly, reflecting on the lessons learned from the slow progress of housing damage surveys following the Kumamoto earthquake in 2016, Kumamoto City has strengthened its disaster response capabilities. All departments’ employees will receive pre-training to ensure efficient recovery support and assistance to other municipalities in times of disaster. That’s all for today’s news. Thank you for listening. And now for the weather. Today in Tokyo, the weather will be sunny with a maximum temperature of 23°C and a minimum temperature of 16°C. Visit JapanDailyNews.com for the news, yen exchange rates, and a daily Japanese proverb.