TOKYO (AP) - Torrential rains forced the evacuation of about 25,000 people in southwestern
           Japan Wednesday after a swollen river surged over a dike, officials said. The residents were
           ordered to seek safety on higher ground after the Kokubu River, which runs through the city of
           Kochi, overflowed, city hall spokesman Yoshihito Kadogaki said. He said there were no reports
           of injuries in Kochi, 385 miles southwest of Tokyo. Parts of western Japan were hit by severe
           storms this week, with 42 inches of rain falling over the past five days in Hongawa, a village near
           Kochi, the Meteorological Agency said. By noon most of the evacuated residents had returned
           to their homes as the rains began to subside, Kadogaki said.