TOKYO, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of thousands of households near Tokyo are still suffering from power outages amid intensely hot and humid conditions, as Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. (TEPCO) struggles to restore power four days after the damage caused by Typhoon Faxai.

TEPCO said in the hardest-hit region of Chiba Prefecture, where Faxai made landfall early Monday, 640,000 homes were initially left without electricity.

As of 3:30 p.m. local time on Thursday, however, more than 310,000 were still waiting for power to be restored, local media reported.

TEPCO had said that it had hoped to restore power to areas suffering from blackouts on Wednesday, but its efforts to do so had been hampered by power lines being damaged more than initially expected, with efforts to restore power hindered by fallen trees and poor visibility due to thunder storms and gray skies, the utility said.

As many as 20,000 households are still without running water in some affected areas as the mercury soared above 30 degrees Celsius on Thursday, forcing some residents to line up for water being delivered by Self-Defense Force tanks.

According to local media reports, adding to people's misery and hardship, in the city of Futtsu, which is dealing with a double disaster of having no power or water supply, 1,800 bottles of emergency water were distributed by officials, only for it to be found they had not been checked and had expired last year and were undrinkable.

Meanwhile, relief goods donated by regular citizens from across Japan have been making their way to some of the hardest-hit areas, with typhoon-ravaged Kyonan town distributing parcels containing bottles of water, instant noodles, toilet paper and other essential items at an elementary school gymnasium on Thursday, local media reports said.

One volunteer in the town said that all donations are welcome as stocks are running low.