英語訳
**[Upper Section]**
*Fūzoku Gahō* (Customs Illustrated), Special Supplementary Issue — Record of Flood Damage (Issue No. 126) — Published November 1st, Meiji 29 (1896)
◯ Reports
● Flood Damage in Nagano Prefecture
From July 21st, floodwaters continued to rise. In Chiisagata District, the Ōya Bridge collapsed, causing more than twenty casualties. In Matsumoto and other areas, many locations were inundated, with deaths among both people and livestock.
**Minami-Saku District**: The water level of the Chikuma River reached one *jō* eight *sun* (approximately 5.5 meters) — compared to a normal level of one *shaku* two *sun* (approximately 36 centimeters). Three bridges spanning the river were washed away, and damage to roads, embankments, and farmland was considerable.
**Kita-Saku District**: Due to rising waters in the Chikuma River and the Jabori River, two riverside homes were flooded and embankments were damaged. Additionally, in the area of Higashiinagura Village, Oiwake section of the same district, the Shinetsu Railway line was destroyed and train service was suspended.
**Chiisagata District**: The Ōya Bridge (length: 60 *ken*, approximately 109 meters), a prefectural road crossing over the Chikuma River; the Kamikawa Bridge (length: 20 *ken*, approximately 36 meters), a national road bridge over the Kami River; and two other bridges, the Yazawa and Yadeizawa bridges over local streams — all were washed away. Twenty people died. Traffic was completely cut off, and damage to embankments and farmland was extensive.
**Suwa District**: The Yokogawa River on the Okaya Highway overflowed, washing away two bridges and severing traffic. Embankment damage was also widespread.
**Ina District**: The Tenryū, Mitake, Ozawa, and Yotagiri rivers all flooded. The Yotagiri Bridge (length: 25 *ken*, approximately 45 meters) on the Sanshū Highway was washed away, cutting off traffic. Embankment damage along all the rivers was considerable.
**Kamitakai District**: The Chikuma River, the Ichimatsu River, and various other rivers flooded extensively, destroying roads and bridges, and severing traffic on the Tani Highway and the Suzaka Highway. Approximately 200 homes were inundated, and damage to farmland was extremely severe.
**Shimotakai District**: The Chikuma River flooded, inundating hundreds of *chōbu* (approximately 1 hectare each) of riverside villages. The Yomase River also surged violently, destroying embankments and flooding dozens of homes, causing significant damage.
**Kamimochi District**: The Sai River flooded, destroying three homes and washing away the Meiji Bridge on the Ōmachi Highway —
**[Lower Section]**
— severing traffic. In Mamejima Village, two sections of embankment were destroyed, and much farmland was inundated. Due to the rising Chikuma River, fifteen homes and dozens of *chōbu* of farmland were flooded in Yanagihara Village. In Torii Village, Asano hamlet, one-third of the area was inundated; four road sections were destroyed and three bridges washed away. In Asahi Village, 40 *ken* of embankment was breached, flooding 195 homes and 135 *chōbu* of farmland. The Torii River also rose (more than one *jō* above normal), flooding riverside farmland and 34 homes, and four bridges collapsed — damage was considerable.
In Odagiri Village, a landslide destroyed one home entirely, though there were no casualties among people or livestock.
The Komazawa River flooded and a bridge on the national road collapsed, severing traffic on the Hokkoku Highway.
On the Shinetsu Railway, damage occurred at multiple locations between Nakamurei and Kashiwabara, and between Murei and Toyono, rendering train service impossible.
**Shimomochi District**: Due to rising water in the Chikuma River, two pontoon bridges connecting to Shimotakai District were removed, cutting off traffic.
**Nishi-Chikuma District**: The Kiso River flooded and destroyed national roads and bridges. The Yazawa River also flooded, inundating homes in Fukushima Town, and the Yazawa Bridge on the national road collapsed.
**Higashi-Chikuma District**: The Susuki River and the Metoba River both rose, breaching 360 *ken* of embankment along the Susuki River and 150 *ken* along the Metoba River. The flooding reached Matsumoto Town, sweeping away homes and causing deaths and injuries among people and livestock — the situation was utterly catastrophic.
**Sarashina District**: The Sai River rose to 21 *shaku* (normal level: 6 *shaku* 5 *sun*), breaching the rear embankment of homes in Tanbajima, Aokijima Village, washing away two homes, and causing extensive damage to farmland and roads.
**Hanishina District**: Due to rising waters in the Chikuma River, over 100 homes in Matsushiro Town, over 40 homes in Tōjō Village, and over 20 homes in Terao Village were inundated. The Sekiya River also flooded, washing away 5 homes, destroying embankments at 3 locations, and causing extensive damage to roads and farmland.
The above account is based on reports from various localities received up to the night of the 21st. However, as both postal and rail services are suspended, and as of this morning the telegraph system throughout the administrative area is also cut off, [the full extent of damage is expected to be considerably greater than reported here].