From Kyodo:
In 2020, the government released its first damage estimates for the Tokyo metropolitan area in the event of an eruption of Japan's highest peak, which straddles Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures west of Tokyo.
In the worst-case scenario, the accumulation of ash could reach 10 centimeters in the capital's Shinjuku Ward 15 days after the eruption starts.
We will need a lot of brooms.
Koji Wakai from The Mainichi:
"Pokemon x Kogei - Playful Encounters of Pokemon and Japanese Craft" began on July 6 at the MOA Museum of Art in the city of Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture. On display are around 70 pieces of artworks including ceramics, lacquerware, metalwork and textiles created by 20 artists representing contemporary Japan -- ranging from those designated as a living national treasure to young people. The works create a new charm for the Pokemon franchise with their unique textures and presence.
I need a metal Eevee now.
From The Guardian:
A woman who was swept out to sea while swimming at a beach in Japan has been rescued about 80km (50 miles) off the coast, 36 hours after she went missing, officials have said.
The 21-year-old Chinese national, buoyed by a rubber ring, had been swimming at Shirahama Ohama beach at about 7.30pm on Monday with a friend, the coast guard said on Thursday.
Literally one of my worst nightmares.
From The Yomiuri Shimbun:
The number of locations with a heat wave of 35 C or higher reached 105 nationwide. The government has issued a heat stroke alert for 26 prefectures across the country, urging people to drink plenty of water and use air conditioners properly.
Stay cool, friends.
Justin McCurry from The Guardian:
The former professional boxer, now aged 88 and battling physical and mental illness, will learn his fate in late September when the Shizuoka district court rules in his retrial, which started in March 2023. He has not appeared in court, having been declared mentally unfit to give credible evidence. His long incarceration has exposed what campaigners call inhumane treatment of death row inmates in Japan.
Regardless of his guilt or not, the death penalty is an echo of an uncivilized past and Japan could easily gain a few rungs on the human rights ladder by abolishing it.
From The Mainichi:
Heavy rain battered wide areas of Japan on Tuesday, disrupting bullet train services between Tokyo and Osaka and prompting the weather agency to urge caution for landslides and floods.