Nipponica

The Tokyo metropolitan government has launched an artificial intelligence system that uses high-altitude cameras to detect fires and building collapses in real-time to accelerate its initial disaster response during major earthquakes.

The AI-driven system analyzes footage from high-resolution cameras, with two installed at the Tokyo metropolitan government building and one each at a bridge near Tokyo Bay and a location in the western part of the metropolitan area, the local authorities and system developer Hitachi Ltd. said.

When Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced he would not run in the Liberal Democratic Party’s presidential election slated for September, he insisted that the ruling party must demonstrate change.

“In this election, we must clearly show the public a new LDP, an LDP that will change,” Kishida said at a press conference Wednesday.

A Yomiuri Shimbun national opinion poll conducted in July revealed that support for the Kishida Cabinet was stuck in the 20% range for the ninth consecutive month, as the impact of a hidden funds scandal that embroiled several party factions continued to reverberate.

A powerful typhoon continued its advance toward Tokyo and other eastern areas of Japan on Friday, with the weather agency urging people to prepare for strong winds and heavy rainfall, and transport operators canceling many train services and flights.

The Japan Meteorological Agency warned of violent winds, mudslides, high waves and flooding, as heavy rain will sharply increase the risk of disaster.