TOKYO: At least three people were killed in southwestern Japan on Thursday as Typhoon Shanshan made landfall in Kagoshima prefecture, bringing heavy rain and very strong winds as well as snarling air traffic and knocking out power to over a quarter million households. #TyphoonShanshanJapan
Major automakers including Toyota and Nissan suspended operations in some or all of their domestic factories due to the storm.
The typhoon struck with gusts reaching 55 meters per second. It made landfall near Satsumasendai city on Kyushu island. The weather agency reported the storm hit early Thursday morning.
Authorities warned that the storm might be one of the strongest ever in the region. Consequently, local governments issued evacuation orders for millions of residents.
Three people died and one went missing due to the typhoon, according to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi. Additionally, two were severely injured, and five sustained minor injuries.
“As this typhoon is moving slowly, total amount of rain could be rather big,” Hayashi told a regular news conference.
Footage from public broadcaster NHK showed walls torn and window glass of buildings broken in Miyazaki city in southern Kyushu, with objects scattered on the street or hanging from utility poles.
Wildfires in Canada’s forests last year released more greenhouse gases than some of the world’s largest emitting countries. #TyphoonShanshanJapan
More than 250,000 households in seven prefectures are experiencing power outage as of 9:00 a.m. on Thursday (0000 GMT), according to Kyushu Electric Power Co.
Typhoon Shanshan is the latest harsh weather system to hit Japan, following Typhoon Ampil, which also led to blackouts and evacuations, earlier this month.
read more
