JAPAN: On Sunday, Typhoon Nanmadol made landfall on Kyushu, the southernmost main island of Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued a gale and high wave warning.
The JMA warned of the possibility of rivers overflowing as the 14th typhoon of the season, which has weakened as it nears Kyushu, is dumping record rainfall.
The US Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) stated Nanmadol as a super-typhoon, making it perhaps the most deadly tropical storm to hit Japan in decades.
The agency said that the central Tokai region might have 300 mm (12 inches) of rain while southern Kyushu could get 400 mm (16 inches) of rain over the next 24 hours and wind gusts of up to 235 km/h (145 mph) on Sunday.
NHK, a public broadcaster, reports that the typhoon has affected southern Kyushu, causing the collapse of a bus stop in Miyazaki Prefecture and a pachinko parlour’s window in Kagoshima Prefecture.
More than 20,000 inhabitants of the severely affected Kagoshima prefecture took refuge at evacuation centres on Sunday. In the nearby Miyazaki prefecture, another 4,700 people were evacuated.
Due to damage to power lines and infrastructure, according to Kyushu Electric Power Co, more than 93,000 houses on the island were left without electricity on Sunday.
Convenience store chain Seven-Eleven Japan has temporarily closed about 950 outlets, and railroad operators and airlines have cancelled services. On Monday, three plants operated by Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) will stop operating.
By Wednesday, the storm is expected to veer to the east, pass over Honshu, the largest island in Japan, and then move out to sea. Tokyo experienced a lot of rain, and flooding forced the suspension of the Tozai subway line.
Seven million people were instructed to evacuate to shelters or seek safety in solid structures to survive the hurricane. Around 20 typhoons hit Japan every year and it is currently typhoon season in the country. These storms often bring heavy rainfall that results in landslides or flash floods.
According to scientists, climate change is making storms more severe and increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, including heat waves, droughts and flash floods.
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