One dead, one missing after typhoon slams southwestern Japan

Tokyo: A tropical storm slammed southwestern Japan with rainfall and winds Monday, leaving one person dead and another missing, as it swerved north towards Tokyo.

Residential streets were flooded with muddy water from rivers, and swathes of homes lost power after Typhoon Nanmadol made landfall in the Kyushu region Sunday then weakened to a tropical storm.

This satellite image released by NASA shows Typhoon Nanmadol on Saturday as it was approaching southwest Japan. Credit: NASA/AP

A man was found dead early on Monday in his car that was sunk in water on a farm, said Yoshiharu Maeda, a city hall official in charge of disasters at Miyakonojo, Miyazaki prefecture. Separately, one person was missing after a cottage was caught in a landslide, according to a Miyazaki prefectural official.

The typhoon was packing sustained winds of 108km/h and gusts of up to 162km/h, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Tens of thousands of people spent the night at gymnasiums and other facilities in a precautionary evacuation of vulnerable homes.

More than 60 people have been injured, including those who fell down in the rain or were hit by shards of glass, according to Japanese media reports.

Torrential winds smashed signboards. A construction crane snapped and a window at a pachinko parlour was shattered in Kagoshima city, southwestern Japan.

Bullet trains and airlines suspended service. Warnings were issued about landslides and swelling rivers. Convenience store chains and delivery services temporarily shuttered in southwestern Japan, while some highways were closed and people had some problems with mobile phone connections.

The storm is forecast to continue its northeasterly path over Japan’s main island of Honshu, unleashing heavy rainfall over the region that includes the cities of Osaka and Kyoto, before arriving in Tokyo on Tuesday and moving towards northeastern Japan.

AP

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