Storm hits southwest Japan, leaves 1 dead, another missing

Tokyo, Sept. 19 (BNA): A tropical storm swept southwest Japan with rain and wind on Monday, killing one person and missing another, as it veered north towards Tokyo.

Residential streets were flooded with muddy water from rivers, and parts of homes were cut off power after Typhoon Nanmadol made landfall in the Kyushu region on Sunday and was weakened by a tropical storm, the Associated Press reported.

Yoshiharu Maeda, a disaster official in Miyakonogo, Miyazaki Prefecture, said a man was found dead early Monday morning in his car that sank into water on a farm. Separately, one person went missing after falling into a shack in a landslide.

Nanmadol experienced winds blowing at 108 kilometers per hour (67 miles per hour) and gusts of up to 162 kilometers (100 miles) per hour, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Tens of thousands of people spent the night in gymnasiums and other facilities precautionary evacuation of at-risk homes.

More than 60 people were injured, including those who fell in the rain or were hit by shards of glass.

High winds smashed the banners. A construction crane snapped and a window shattered at the Pachinko Salon in Kagoshima City, southwest Japan.

Bullet trains and airlines are out of service. There were warnings of landslides and swollen rivers. Convenience store chains and delivery services temporarily closed in southwest Japan, while some highways were closed and people had some problems with cell phone communications.

The storm is expected to continue dumping rain on its northeastern path over Japan’s main island of Honshu, before moving over Tokyo and then northeastern Japan.

HF