Surfer waits for one of Typhoon Talas’ waves at Nishihara Beach, near Tokyo, Sep 3, 2011. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

In Japan, the death toll has topped 30 in the aftermath of Typhoon Talas, which slammed the island nation with flooding rain and high winds late last week.

As of Monday, the death toll has climbed to at least 31 with more than 50 missing, according to the Straits Times of Singapore. Rescue teams were at work combing wreckage for the missing.

The storm struck central Japan hardest, with the prefectures of Wakayama and Nara hardest hit, according to reports on line. The two prefectures lie on the Kii Peninsula of southern Honshu Island, and a few hundred miles southwest of the Tokai earthquake and tsunami disaster area.

In the village of Totsukawa, Nara, there was one death with seven missing after two homes were washed away, the Japan Times reported. The report also said that the 591.5 mm (23.29 inches) of rain that washed Totsukawa was the highest for a single day in the area.

Much of a 39-meter rail bridge spanning the Nachi River in Nachikatsuura was washed away by flood waters, the Japan Times said.

The storm also damaged the site of the well-known Nijo Castle in Kyoto. A piece of plaster was broken off a wall at one of the castle gates.

Reports on line indicated that Talas was the worst tropical cyclone to strike Japan since October, 2004, when Typhoon Tokage killed nearly 100 people.