Japan's strongest typhoon this year made landfall in southwestern Japan, bringing torrential rain that damaged houses and winds of up to 252 kilometers (157 miles) per hour.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said Typhoon Shanshan made landfall in Kyushu at around 8 a.m. According to power companies, 254,610 homes have already lost power.
The Japan Meteorological Agency forecast 1,100 mm (43 inches) of rainfall in southern Kyushu in the 48 hours ending Friday morning, about half the annual average for the region that includes Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures.
Authorities issued an unusually special typhoon warning for much of Kagoshima prefecture in southern Kyushu, and residents in risk areas were urged to remain on high alert while transport and airlines suspended train and plane services.
The potential for significant damage is high due to Xiang Xiang's slow speed, with the Japan Meteorological Agency saying the storm is moving north at just 15 kilometers per hour.
Landslides, a major danger in mountainous areas, have already killed people and prompted tens of thousands of people to evacuate.
“Typhoon No. 10 is expected to approach southern Kyushu with extremely strong force through Thursday,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters. “There is a risk of violent winds, high waves and storm surges the likes of which many people have never experienced before.”
Toyota Motor Corp. halted production at all 14 of its factories as the storm approached, and other major automakers have followed suit, according to Kyodo News.
Kyodo News reported early Thursday morning, citing local authorities, that a landslide buried a home in central Gamagori, killing a family of three.
According to Kyodo News, the victims included a couple in their 70s and their son in his 30s, while two adult daughters in their 40s were injured.
The agency also issued the highest level of “special warning” for strong winds, high waves and high tides for parts of the Kagoshima region, and authorities advised 56,000 people to evacuate.
Footage from public broadcaster NHK showed roof tiles blown off homes, windows shattered and trees downed.
“The entire roof of the carport was blown away. I wasn't at home at the time, but my children said they felt the shaking so strong they thought there was an earthquake,” one Miyazaki resident told NHK. “We were shocked. It was completely beyond our imagination.”
The warning is ” [the typhoon] “The risk is very high,” Satoshi Sugimoto, chief forecaster at the Japan Meteorological Agency, said at a press conference.
Japan Airlines canceled 172 domestic flights and six international flights scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, while All Nippon Airways canceled 219 domestic flights and four international flights over Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
The cancellations affected around 25,000 people.
Kyushu Railway suspended some bullet train services between Kumamoto and Kagoshima-Chuo from Wednesday night and warned of the possibility of further disruptions. Other rail companies said trains between Tokyo and Fukuoka, Kyushu's most populous region, could also be canceled depending on weather conditions this week.
Xiangshan came on the heels of Typhoon Ampil, which disrupted hundreds of flights and train services this month and caused only minor injuries and damage despite dumping heavy rains.
Ampil occurred just days after Tropical Storm Maria brought record rains to northern regions.
Japan has only issued special typhoon warnings three times in history: in July 2014, when a powerful typhoon brought record-high waves to southern Okinawa before moving north and killing three people in Nagano prefecture by causing a landslide.
Authorities issued a similar warning for the main island of Okinawa in October 2016. The typhoon moved northward over the ocean west of the southernmost tip of Kyushu Island.
According to NHK, the most recent special typhoon warning was issued in September 2022, marking the first time such a warning was issued outside Okinawa Prefecture.
Like the typhoon that made landfall in southwestern Japan on Thursday morning, the storm moved slowly, giving it time to cause extensive damage to homes. Five people were killed in the disaster.
A study published last month found that due to the climate crisis, tropical storms in the region are forming closer to the coastline, intensifying more quickly and staying over land longer.
Human-induced climate disruption is increasing the occurrence of the most intense and destructive tropical cyclones (though the annual total globally remains unchanged), as warming oceans provide more energy and create more powerful storms.
Warmer air holds more water vapor, which has led to a significant increase in extreme rainfall from tropical storms. For example, the rainfall caused by Hurricane Harvey in Texas in 2017 would have been nearly impossible without record-breaking ocean temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico.
Coastal storm surges are also becoming higher and more damaging due to rising sea levels caused by climate change. For example, the devastating storm surge caused by Typhoon Haiyan that hit the Philippines in 2013 was 20% higher Due to human-induced climate disruption.
Agence France-Presse
