Overview
- The blaze ignited around 5:40 p.m. Tuesday in Saganoseki, rapidly spreading through homes and up nearby forested slopes.
- The Fire and Disaster Management Agency reported more than 170 buildings damaged or destroyed in the coastal district.
- Roughly 175 residents evacuated to emergency shelters as crews worked through the night to contain further spread.
- Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi confirmed the Self-Defense Forces helicopter deployment in a post on X.
- Authorities said one person remains unaccounted for, opened a cause investigation, and urged evacuees to remain in shelters and others to avoid the area, including the terrain around Seki fishing port.