Death toll increases to 18 in Japan's Hiroshima Prefecture

According to the report, a two-year-old boy and a rescue worker were among the victims of the disaster. The boy was pronounced dead after being buried for two hours in a mudslide.

Hiroshima was hit by torrential rain in the early hours of Wednesday with more than 100 millimeters of rain per hour recorded, triggering at least 20 reports of people buried alive or washed away in flooding, the report said, adding that residents in areas hit by the heavy rain had been advised to evacuate.

The Hiroshima prefectural government requested the dispatch of the Ground Self-Defense Force for rescue operations, the report added.