B y dawn’s break, after a night of lashing rain and violent winds, the full scale of destruction was laid bare. For Koriyama, an industrial hub in Fukushima Prefecture, the flooding had been extensive.

In the east of the city, whole neighbourhoods were left submerged. All that could be seen, as rescuers began their recovery efforts last weekend, were the rooftops – islands of grey and iron-brown beneath a subdued sky.

Typhoon Hagibis, one of the strongest storms to hit in decades, has left its mark on Japan. Five lives were lost in Koriyama. In the Suimoncho neighbourhood, a compact network of worn, wooden homes that sits on the city’s river banks, one of their own was among that count.

The floodwater had come quickly in these parts, rising to chest height in little more than an hour after a major levee was broken.

“There’s never been this much damage before,” says Moe Kaneda, a teacher in the city centre. “This is the first time ever.”

Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Show all 30 1 /30 Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years CHIBA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 13: Buildings lie in ruins after they were hit by a tornado shortly before the arrival of Typhoon Hagibis, on October 13, 2019 in Chiba, Japan. At least five people are reported dead and many others are missing after Typhoon Hagibis, one of the most powerful storms in decades, swept across Japan. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Carl Court Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years CHIBA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 13: People sort through the debris of buildings that were destroyed by a tornado shortly before the arrival of Typhoon Hagibis, on October 13, 2019 in Chiba, Japan. At least five people are reported dead and many others are missing after Typhoon Hagibis, one of the most powerful storms in decades, swept across Japan. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Carl Court Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years epa07917090 Workers standing in flood water check the conditions of their office (unseen) after the passage of Typhoon Hagibis in Nagano, Nagano Prefecture, central Japan, 13 October 2019. According to reports, Tyhoon Hagibis has killed at least 24 people, injured 170 people and left some 170 others missing. The strong typhoon forced the suspension of railway services all over the country and cancelled about 1,600 domestic and international flights. EPA/KIMIMASA MAYAMA KIMIMASA MAYAMA EPA Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years A residential area flooded by the Chikuma river, caused by Typhoon Hagibis is seen in Nagano, central Japan, October 13, 2019, in this photo taken by Kyodo. Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. JAPAN OUT. KYODO REUTERS Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years epa07917078 An aerial picture shows a nursing care home in a flooded area in Kawagoe, Saitama prefecture, Japan, 13 October 2019. According to latest media reports, at least 25 people have died and more than 10 are missing after powerful typhoon Hagibis hit Japan provoking landslides and rivers overflowing across the country. EPA/JIJI PRESS JAPAN OUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/ NO ARCHIVES JIJI PRESS EPA Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years epa07919525 Residents hug as they reunite in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis, in Nagano, Japan, 14 October 2019. According to media reports, at least 40 people died, more than 180 people were injured and at least 16 went missing as the typhoon made landfall in Japan. Hagibis, the strongest typhoon recorded this season, forced the suspension of many Japan railway services all over the country. About 1,600 domestic and international flights were cancelled. Japan's Meteorological Agency issued evacuation order for more than four million people. EPA/KIMIMASA MAYAMA KIMIMASA MAYAMA EPA Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years This aerial view shows a flooded area beside the Abukuma river in Marumori, Miyagi prefecture on October 13, 2019, one day after Typhoon Hagibis swept through central and eastern Japan. - At least 15 people are dead and nine others missing, officials said on October 13, a day after powerful Typhoon Hagibis slammed into Japan, unleashing "unprecedented" rain and catastrophic flooding. (Photo by JIJI PRESS / JIJI PRESS / AFP) / Japan OUT (Photo by JIJI PRESS/JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Images) JIJI PRESS JIJI PRESS/AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years A family rest at an evacuation shelter in Nagano on October 14, 2019, after Typhoon Hagibis crashed into Japan on October 12, unleashing high winds and torrential rain across 36 of the country's 47 prefectures, and triggering landslides and catastrophic flooding. - Tens of thousands of rescue workers in Japan battled on October 14 to find survivors of a powerful typhoon that killed at least 43 people, as fresh rain threatened to hamper efforts. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images) KAZUHIRO NOGI AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Rescue workers search a flooded area in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis, which caused severe floods at the Chikuma River in Nagano, Nagano Prefecture, Japan, October 14, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon KIM KYUNG-HOON Reuters Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Vehicles are seen under water following the typhoon-hit town of Marumori, Miyagi prefecture, Japan , Monday, Oct. 14, 2019. Typhoon Hagibis unleashed torrents of rain and strong winds Saturday, leaving thousands of homes on Japan's main island flooded, damaged or without power. (Kyodo News via AP) AP Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years NAGANO, JAPAN - OCTOBER 14: A man pushes his bike past an upturned car in a road that was flooded during Typhoon Hagibis, on October 14, 2019 in Nagano, Japan. Japan has mobilised 110,000 rescuer workers after Typhoon Hagibis, the most powerful storm in decades, swept across the country leaving 37 dead and around 20 missing. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Carl Court Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years In this Oct. 13, 2019, photo, Canadian rugby team players volunteer to clean a road in Kamaishi, Iwate prefecture, Japan, following the cancellation of their Rugby World Cup Pool B match against Namibia due to Typhoon Hagibis. The powerful typhoon unleashed torrents of rain and strong winds Saturday that left thousands of homes on Japan's main island flooded, damaged or without power. (Kyodo News via AP) AP Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years A small pickup truck is submerged in floodwaters at an apple orchard, Monday, Oct. 14, 2019, in Hoyasu, Japan. Rescue crews in Japan dug through mudslides and searched near swollen rivers Monday as they looked for those missing from a typhoon that left as many as 36 dead and caused serious damage in central and northern Japan. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Jae C. Hong AP Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years TOPSHOT - This aerial view shows a damaged train bridge over the swollen Chikuma river in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis in Ueda, Nagano prefecture on October 13, 2019. - At least 26 people were killed by powerful Typhoon Hagibis, local media reported on October 13, a day after the ferocious storm slammed into Japan, unleashing unprecedented rain and catastrophic flooding. (Photo by STR / JIJI PRESS / AFP) / Japan OUT (Photo by STR/JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Images) STR JIJI PRESS/AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years epa07919551 Residents walk through a typhoon-affected area in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis, in Nagano, Japan, 14 October 2019. According to media reports, at least 40 people died, more than 180 people were injured and at least 16 went missing as the typhoon made landfall in Japan. Hagibis, the strongest typhoon recorded this season, forced the suspension of many Japan railway services all over the country. About 1,600 domestic and international flights were cancelled. Japan's Meteorological Agency issued evacuation order for more than four million people. EPA/KIMIMASA MAYAMA KIMIMASA MAYAMA EPA Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years A building is surrounded by floodwaters Monday, Oct. 14, 2019, in Hoyasu, Japan. Rescue crews in Japan dug through mudslides and searched near swollen rivers Monday as they looked for those missing from a typhoon that left as many as 36 dead and caused serious damage in central and northern Japan. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Jae C. Hong AP Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Emergency personnel paddle across floodwaters using an inflatable raft during search and rescue operations in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis, in Nagano on October 14, 2019. - Tens of thousands of rescue workers were searching October 14 for survivors of powerful Typhoon Hagibis, two days after the storm slammed into Japan, killing at least 35 people. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images) KAZUHIRO NOGI AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years This photo shows a flooded area in Nagano, central Japan following Typhoon Hagibis , Monday, Oct. 14, 2019. The typhoon dropped record amounts of rain for a period in some spots, according to meteorological officials, causing more than 20 rivers to overflow. Some of the muddy waters in streets, fields and residential areas have subsided. But many places remained flooded, with homes and surrounding roads covered in mud and littered with broken wooden pieces and debris. (Kyodo News via AP) AP Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years NAGANO, JAPAN - OCTOBER 14: Shinkansen bullet trains sit stationary after being flooded during Typhoon Hagibis, on October 14, 2019 in Nagano, Japan. Japan has mobilised 110,000 rescuer workers after Typhoon Hagibis, the most powerful storm in decades, swept across the country leaving 37 dead and around 20 missing. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Carl Court Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years MARUMORI, JAPAN - OCTOBER 14: A woman is rescued by police officers in an area that was flooded by Typhoon Hagibis on October 14, 2019 in Marumori, Miyagi, Japan. Japan has mobilised 110,000 rescuer workers after Typhoon Hagibis, the most powerful storm in decades, swept across the country leaving 37 dead and around 20 missing. (Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images) Tomohiro Ohsumi Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years MARUMORI, JAPAN - OCTOBER 14: Police officers search an area by boat that was flooded by Typhoon Hagibis on October 14, 2019 in Marumori, Miyagi, Japan. Japan has mobilised 110,000 rescuer workers after Typhoon Hagibis, the most powerful storm in decades, swept across the country leaving 37 dead and around 20 missing. (Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images) Tomohiro Ohsumi Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years epaselect epa07919532 A resident reacts as he walks through a typhoon-affected area in the aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis, in Nagano, Japan, 14 October 2019. According to media reports, at least 40 people died, more than 180 people were injured and at least 16 went missing as the typhoon made landfall in Japan. Hagibis, the strongest typhoon recorded this season, forced the suspension of many Japan railway services all over the country. About 1,600 domestic and international flights were cancelled. Japan's Meteorological Agency issued evacuation order for more than four million people. EPA/KIMIMASA MAYAMA KIMIMASA MAYAMA EPA Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Damaged houses caused by weather patterns from Typhoon Hagibis are seen in Ichihara, Chiba prefecture on October 12, 2019. - Powerful Typhoon Hagibis on October 12 claimed its first victim even before making landfall, as potentially record-breaking rains and high winds sparked evacuation orders for more than a million people. (Photo by Jiji Press / JIJI PRESS / AFP) / Japan OUT (Photo by JIJI PRESS/JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Images) JIJI Press/AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years A taxi speeds through water covering a road in the Aoyama district of Tokyo on October 12, 2019, as the effects of Typhoon Hagibis is started to be felt in Japan's capital. - Powerful Typhoon Hagibis on October 12 claimed its first victim even before making landfall, as potentially record-breaking rains and high winds sparked evacuation orders for more than 1.6 million people. (Photo by William WEST / AFP) (Photo by WILLIAM WEST/AFP via Getty Images) AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Pedestrians hold onto their umbrellas as rain falls amid strong winds in Tokyo on October 12, 2019, ahead of Typhoon Hagibis' expected landfall in central or eastern Japan later in the evening. - Powerful Typhoon Hagibis on October 12 claimed its first victim even before making landfall, as potentially record-breaking rains and high winds sparked evacuation orders for more than 1.6 million people. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images) AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years A man walks past empty shelves in a store in Tokyo on October 11, 2019, as typhoon Hagibis heads towards the city. - Japan braced on October 11 for a powerful typhoon barrelling towards Tokyo that has already forced the cancellation of two Rugby World Cup matches, disrupted the Suzuka Grand Prix and grounded flights. (Photo by Franck FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images) AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years YOKOHAMA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 12: Staff close the entrance to the Shinkansen at Shin-Yokohama Station as all services are suspended ahead of Typhoon Hagibis on October 12, 2019 in Yokohama, Japan. Meteorologists forecast Typhoon Hagibis which has rapidly intensified will hit the mainland today resulting in record-breaking rain and winds to the Tokai area, and the Kanto region, including Tokyo. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images) Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years TOKYO, JAPAN - OCTOBER 12: A man covers over a doorway to a pachinko parlour ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Hagibis on October 12, 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. Typhoon Hagibis is the most powerful typhoon to hit Japan this year and has been classed by the Japan Meteorological Agency as a 'violent typhoon' - the highest category on Japans typhoon scale. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Commuters take taxi under the rain at an entrance of the JR Tokyo Station on October 12, 2019, ahead of Typhoon Hagibis' expected landfall in central or eastern Japan later in the evening. - Typhoon Hagibis, rated "large and very strong", has forced the cancellation of two Rugby World Cup matches, disrupted the Suzuka Grand Prix and grounded more than 1,600 flights. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images) AFP/Getty Typhoon Hagibis - Japan hit by strongest storm in 60 years Typhoon Hagibis - Saturday 12 October YOKOHAMA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 12: Shin-Yokohama Station is seen deserted as retail outlets are closed and all Shinkansen services are suspended ahead of Typhoon Hagibis on October 12, 2019 in Yokohama, Japan. Meteorologists forecast Typhoon Hagibis which has rapidly intensified will hit the mainland today resulting in record-breaking rain and winds to the Tokai area, and the Kanto region, including Tokyo. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images) Getty

Fukushima, which suffered immensely with the horrors of the 2011 earthquake, was one of the hardest-hit prefectures in Japan. Of the 78 people so far confirmed as dead in the wake of Hagibis, with nine others still missing, 25 are thought to have come from the northeast.

Many of those were killed in the floods. At least 14 levees burst along the Abukuma River, which meanders through a number of cities in the prefecture, including Koriyama, spinning into motion the chaos that locals are now attempting to recover from.

In Suimoncho, the narrow streets are lined with rubbish and sodden debris days after the storm’s arrival. Mattresses stained brown with flood water are stacked high in the street. Broken TVs are coated in dust. A pair of football boots are left to dry in the warm sun. Homes stand empty and bare, skeletal-like, stripped of their possessions as residents, clad in white overhauls, salvage what they can. As of Wednesday afternoon, many elderly remained in local evacuation centres – municipal buildings, sports halls, high schools – unable to clean up their homes.

For Chiko and her family, there’s a long way to go before any sense of normality returns. Their house, close to the foot of one the river’s levees, has been devastated.

“I think it’ll take a month to sort,” she says, a wheelbarrow to hand and with a mask covering her face. “The bottom floor is completely ruined. Everything is gone.”

It’s the same story for those homes up and down the country that were engulfed by the floodwaters. NHK, Japan’s national broadcaster, reported this week that 13,000 houses were submerged and more than 1,100 at least partly destroyed. Meanwhile, about 12,000 homes are still without electricity or have no running water. It’s unclear how long it will take for utilities to restore full-working service.

The worry is what comes next for Koriyama, Fukushima and similar areas that are continuing to bear the brunt of Japan’s natural disasters.

Koriyama was severely flooded when the Abukuma river burst its banks in Typhoon Hagibis (AFP/Getty)

While the likes of central Tokyo woke to sharp sunshine last weekend, unharmed and largely unscathed by Hagibis, the same cannot be said for those regions where infrastructure offers insufficient resistance to the fury brought by typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis.

In the capital, subterranean surge chambers, some the size of cathedrals and two football fields long, protect the city above during heavy storms and the torrential downpours they generate. In Koriyama, the main line of defence is banks of earth three metres high.

Although Hagibis was unprecedented in scale and ferocity – weather officials said some places that flooded received up to 40 per cent of their annual rainfall in just two days – many are fearful that, under the effects of global warming, a similar-sized storm will return in the near future.

“It could be climate change,” says Moe. “This is the first time it’s been very bad but after a year or some time we could get hit by another big typhoon because of warming.”

Given the area’s recent history, the prospect of more natural disasters, or an increase in their frequency, sends a shiver down the spine of those living here.

People came together after the earthquake . . . We will do the same now Moe Kaneda, teacher in Koriyama

As with the wider country, Fukushima’s economy was decimated by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. The region also had to contend with the nuclear fallout from the damaged Daiichi power plant as radiation leakage made its way into water supplies, milk and vegetables.

Regrowth was hindered by staggering financial costs – in excess of $250bn (£192bn) for Japan as a whole – and high relocation rates, which saw local populations shrink and shoot upwards in age. Around 10,000 residents left Koriyama in the aftermath of the disaster, while villages up and down the prefecture were hit hard by mass exoduses.

Some remain unconvinced that Fukushima has fully recovered, despite the insistence of municipal authorities that this is the case. And now, the prefecture is facing yet another expensive clean-up. At this stage, who knows how much of a setback Hagibis will prove to be for the region.

“Economic impact in disasters can quickly cascade through different sectors of the economy,” says Hiba Baroud, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Vanderbilt University. “Production can be affected either by direct impact from the disaster or through interdependent effects resulting from disruptions in the supply chain.

“Local and national authorities need to account for all these aspects in assessing the damage to identify the best recovery strategy for the city.”

Indeed, the government has already said it plans to designate Typhoon Hagibis as a “severe natural disaster” to free up more subsidies for reconstruction.

Some will feel, though, that the “best recovery strategy” is simply soldiering on. Japanese resilience is given no greater showing than in the face of natural-spun adversity.

Although the nation is by no means immune to the pain, suffering and loss that comes with these disasters, there seems to be an inherent drive among the people to dig in, to carry on, to serve their duty in times of difficulty – of which there have been many over the years.

“I think that’s a really strong part of Japanese society in general,” says Joost Kralt, a coordinator for international relations at Koriyama City Hall. “They really go with the punches.”