Japan’s capital braced for a powerful typhoon on Sunday that killed five people and forced tens of thousands to evacuate across the country.
Authorities warned that Typhoon Man-Yi, packing sustained winds of 108km/h and gusts of up to 162km/h, could continue to wreak havoc as it moved up the Pacific coast toward Tokyo.
By Sunday afternoon, the storm was about 60km off the Izu peninsula, west of Tokyo, after lashing southern and western Japan with heavy rain and fierce winds.
Earlier in the day, rescuers found the body of a 79-year-old farmer who was swept into a river after going to check on his rice field in Tokushima, on the western island of Shikoku, according to Yukihide Nakashima of the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
An 11-year-old boy was killed when he fell into a river in Kagoshima city, on Kyushu island, on Saturday. Three other men died in southern Japan on Sunday, all after being swept into rivers and water-filled ditches, the agency said.
More than 30 000 people along the typhoon’s path were evacuated as forecasters warned of continued heavy rains, high waves and strong winds.
At least 80 people were injured as the typhoon skirted its way up Honshu island’s east coast, mostly from falling down, Nakashima said.
Man-Yi was expected to hit the Tokyo region late on Sunday, bringing strong winds and up to 250mm of rain, according to the Meteorological Agency.
High winds off the Izu island chain south of Tokyo were whipping up waves as high as 9m, the agency said.
Man-Yi is the strongest typhoon on record to hit Japan in July, when storms are relatively rare, according to agency spokesperson Toshiyuki Suzuki.
But more powerful and destructive typhoons have hit the country in August and September, he noted. In September 2005, Typhoon Nabi struck a wide swathe of the country, leaving 15 dead or missing.
On Saturday, rescuers airlifted 29 people from remote regions on Kyushu over fears of landslides triggered by heavy rains, according to the disaster agency.
Mudslides destroyed five houses in the southern prefecture of Kagoshima, according to public broadcaster NHK.
Airlines cancelled hundreds of flights leaving Kyushu, as well as from airports in Nagoya and Tokyo. — Sapa-AP