A powerful tropical storm battered southwestern Japan on Tuesday, injuring 15 people and prompting hundreds of thousands of residents to evacuate due to the risk of flooding and landslides.
Storm Jangmi – which has since weakened to no longer typhoon status – also caused power outages in tens of thousands of households and grounded hundreds of flights.
However, the storm was moving northeast towards Tokyo, where authorities warned of possible traffic disruptions and school closures on Wednesday.
The Japanese government said an evacuation warning had been issued for more than 800,000 people in Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures on the southern main island of Kyushu due to Typhoon Jangmi.
Local media published footage of heavy rainfall and strong winds that felled a ten-meter-high tree in Okinawa.
About 17,000 households in Okinawa and more than 30,000 in the southwestern Kagoshima region were without power Tuesday morning.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 15 people were injured by Jangmi in Okinawa.
Typhoon #Jangmi has hit Japan. More than 62,000 people have been advised to evacuate#Japan #typhoon #Okinawa pic.twitter.com/6XaTzv4Sti
— RRN (@R_R_N_ews) June 2, 2026
Public broadcaster NHK reported that injuries occurred when objects carried by the wind struck cars, as well as strong gusts of wind that caused people to fall.
According to the meteorological agency, at 4 pm local time, the storm was approaching the southern tip of Kyushu Island, the southernmost of Japan’s four main islands, with maximum wind gusts of 90 kilometers per hour.
The storm was expected to move northeast and approach Tokyo during Wednesday.
Japan’s chief government spokesman Minoru Kihara warned that public transport in Tokyo and surrounding cities could be disrupted on Wednesday as the storm approaches.
– We urge everyone who lives in areas that could be affected by the storm to carefully follow the evacuation information published by local authorities and to consider timely evacuation – Kihara said at the press conference.
“We ask citizens to remain vigilant and take all necessary measures to protect their lives.”
Some schools in Tokyo have already announced that they will be closed on Wednesday for the safety of children during their departure and return from school.
Japan’s two largest airlines, All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines, canceled a total of about 600 flights scheduled for the period from Monday to Wednesday.
(Vijesti.ba)
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