International
-DW News
Tokyo,
Sep
18:
Southern
Japan
was
bracing
for
“super
typhoon”
Nanmadol
as
strong
winds
and
heavy
rains
battered
the
region
on
Sunday.
Thousands
of
people
were
evacuated,
and
the
Japan’s
Meteorological
Agency
(JMA)
warned
of
unprecedented
conditions
while
the
typhoon
was
passing
by
remote
Yakushima
island.
Nanmadol
was
moving
north
toward
Japan’s
main
southern
island
of
Kyushu,
where
it
was
forecast
to
make
landfall
later
on
Sunday.
“Please
stay
away
from
dangerous
places,
and
please
evacuate
if
you
feel
even
the
slightest
hint
of
danger,”
Prime
Minister
Fumio
Kishida
said
after
convening
a
government
meeting
on
the
typhoon.
“It
will
be
dangerous
to
evacuate
at
night.
Please
move
to
safety
while
it’s
still
light
outside,”
he
added.
Meanwhile,
authorities
issued
a
tsunami
warning
for
Okinawa,
Japan’s
southernmost
and
westernmost
prefecture,
after
a
strong
earthquake
hit
Taiwan.
How
has
Typhoon
Nanmadol
affected
Kyushu?
The
JMA
issued
a
rare
“special
warning”
for
Kyushu’s
Kagoshima
and
Miyazaki
regions.
Japanese
authorities
only
issue
such
alert
for
forecast
conditions
only
seen
once
in
several
decades.
“The
southern
part
of
the
Kyushu
region
may
see
the
sort
of
violent
wind,
high
waves
and
high
tides
that
have
never
been
experienced
before,”
the
JMA
said
Sunday,
urging
residents
to
exercise
“the
highest
caution
possible.”
More
than
4,700
people
in
Miyazaki
were
evacuated,
while
in
neighboring,
hard-hit
Kagoshima,
more
than
9,000
residents
took
shelter
at
evacuation
centers
on
Sunday.
Some
93,000
homes
across
the
southern
island
were
without
electricity
due
to
damage
to
power
lines
and
facilities,
according
to
Kyushu
Electric
Power
company.
The
conditions
have
also
paralyzed
travel,
with
hundreds
of
domestic
flights
in
and
out
of
the
region
canceled.
Flights
are
also
planned
to
be
grounded
in
western
Japan
through
Tuesday
as
the
typhoon
heads
northeast,
Japan
Airlines
said.
Public
transportation
has
also
been
suspended
throughout
Sunday
in
Kagoshima
and
Miyazaki.
What
is
the
forecast
for
Typhoon
Nanmadol?
The
JMA
expects
Kyushu
to
receive
50
centimeters
(20
inches)
of
rain
and
wind
gusts
of
up
to
250
kilometers
(155
miles)
per
hour
on
Sunday.
The
central
Tokai
region
could
have
30
centimeters
of
rain.
By
Wednesday,
Nanmadol
is
forecast
to
have
moved
out
to
sea
after
passing
over
Japan’s
main
island
of
Honshu.
It
has
already
brought
heavy
rains
to
Tokyo,
causing
the
suspension
of
some
subway
lines.
Japan
and
extreme
weather
Nanmadol
is
the
14th
typhoon
of
the
season.
Japan
routinely
sees
heavy
rains
that
trigger
landslides
or
flashfloods
in
typhoon
seasons.
But
scientists
warn
that
climate
change
heightens
the
intensity
of
such
weather
conditions.
In
2019,
more
than
100
people
died
as
Typhoon
Hagibis
pounded
Japan
as
it
hosted
the
Rugby
World
Cup.
A
year
earlier,
at
least
200
people
were
killed
in
western
Japan
during
the
annual
rainy
season.
Source: DW
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