Unprecedented rainfall battered Japan on Thursday, leaving at least four people dead and flooding parts of Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo. Authorities issued the region’s highest-level rain warning for the first time, while landslide alerts and power cuts affected thousands of residents.

Record-breaking heavy rain has pounded eastern Japan, flooding roads and homes, paralyzing traffic, and causing power outages near Tokyo.

Eastern Japan experienced torrential rain on Thursday, causing landslides and power outages. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued its highest-level heavy rain warning for Chiba.…