Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko are considering visiting in September three prefectures in western Japan that were devastated by torrential rains last month, senior officials of the Imperial Household Agency said Tuesday.

The imperial couple are hoping to visit Okayama and Hiroshima on Sept. 13 and Ehime on Sept. 20 after the areas were hit by floods and mudslides caused by heavy rains in early July.

The torrential rains have claimed 226 lives mainly in the three hardest-hit prefectures. More than 3,600 people were still living in evacuation shelters as of Aug. 3, according to a Kyodo News tally.

Ahead of the visit, the couple invited the governors of the three prefectures to the Imperial Palace to hear about the damage.

The emperor, who is set to abdicate on April 30, 2019, and empress had cancelled a private trip to Shizuoka Prefecture in central Japan and their planned summer retreat north of Tokyo following the heavy rain.

(Photo taken on July 9, 2018, shows a rain-hit residential area in Kurashiki, Okayama Pref.)