Typhoon Shanshan hits Japan with torrential rains and winds of more than 100 km/h: 3 dead and 82 injured

Infobae

Tokio.-Powerful Typhoon Shanshan made landfall on Thursday on the main island of Kyushu, southwest of Japan, leaving three dead, 82 injured and one missing, and prompting authorities to recommend the evacuation of millions of people.

It made landfall on Thursday morning as a powerful typhoon on the southern island of Kyushu and then gradually lost strength, although it is still forecast to bring strong winds, high waves and significant rainfall to much of the country, particularly Kyushu.

Some 60 centimetres of rain fell in parts of Miyazaki prefecture in Kyushu, causing rivers to swell and threatening flooding, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The 24-hour total was higher than the average for all of August, it added.

By late Thursday afternoon, the storm was moving north at 15 kilometers per hour (9 mph) and its winds had weakened to 108 kilometers per hour (67 mph). “It is no longer a strong typhoon,” the agency said.

Hurricane Shanshan slammed into the city center of Miyazaki, toppling trees, throwing cars into parking lots and shattering windows in some buildings. The prefecture’s disaster management task force said 40 buildings were damaged.

Public broadcaster NHK showed a swollen river in the popular hot spring town of Yufu in Oita prefecture, just north of Miyazaki, with muddy water splashing onto a bridge.

At least 50 people were injured in Kyushu, about half of them in Miyazaki. Some were hurt when they were thrown to the ground by the storm while heading to shelters, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said.

Nearly a quarter of a million households were left without power in Kyushu, most of them in Kagoshima prefecture, Kyushu Electric Power Co. said.

Some 20,000 people have taken shelter in municipal community centers, school gymnasiums and other facilities across Kyushu, according to prefectural reports.

Before the storm hit, heavy rains triggered a landslide that buried a house in the central city of Gamagori, killing three residents and injuring two others, the city’s disaster management department said. On the southern island of Amami, which passes through Shanshan, one person was injured when he was knocked over by a gust of wind while riding a motorcycle, the fire department said.

Weather and government officials are concerned about the potential for extensive damage as the storm moves slowly northeast across the Japanese archipelago in the coming days, threatening more flooding and landslides. The storm’s impact has yet to be felt in the Tokyo region, where activity is continuing as usual and heavy rain is forecast for later this week.

Disaster Management Minister Yoshifumi Matsumura said Shanshan could cause “unprecedented” levels of violent winds, high waves, storm surges and heavy rain. At a task force meeting on Wednesday, he urged people, especially the elderly, not to hesitate and seek shelter whenever there is any safety concern.

Hundreds of domestic flights connecting southwestern cities and islands were canceled on Thursday, and bullet trains and some local train services were suspended. Similar measures were taken in parts of the main island of Honshu where rain was heavy. Postal and delivery services were suspended in the Kyushu region, and supermarkets and other shops were planned to close.Clarin.