Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Typhoon strongest to hit Japan in decade

Kenji Hall Associated Press

TOKYO – A powerful typhoon raked Japan’s Pacific coastline Saturday, killing at least two people and leaving at least five others missing in the most powerful storm to hit the nation in a decade, officials said.

Ma-on, which means horse saddle in Cantonese, was the record eighth typhoon to reach Japan’s shores this year. On Friday, Meteorological Agency officials said the brunt of the tempest – which had sustained winds of 100 miles per hour – was stronger than any other to hit the eastern coast in 10 years.

By late Saturday, the storm had passed, veering eastward over the Pacific Ocean.

The agency forecast about 10 inches of rain through today along the eastern seaboard of the main island of Honshu. It warned of high tides and landslides due to unstable, rain-soaked soil.

Hardest hit were Tokyo and the central states of Shizuoka and Aichi, where rain turned streets into rivers, mudslides damaged homes and gusts ripped trees from the ground.

National Police said a 55-year-old man was crushed to death when a landslide buried his home in Kamakura, southwest of Tokyo. A 72-year-old man in Kamogun, about 95 miles west of the capital, was struck and killed by a toppled electricity pole. Another death previously blamed on the storm was found to be unrelated.

Five people in eastern and central Japan were missing, including a 74-year-old man who may have fallen into a rain-swollen river while delivering newspapers early Saturday, according to police. At least five others were treated at hospitals for broken bones and other injuries.

Public broadcaster NHK said more than 400 domestic and international flights and most ferry services along the east coast had been canceled. In central and eastern Japan, railway operators suspended train services and roads were closed to traffic, NHK said.

Rescuers with boats plucked dozens of residents from waterlogged homes in Shizuoka state, officials said. Authorities had ordered evacuations in Shizuoka, Mie, Wakayama, Nara and Osaka prefectures and about 1,500 people took refuge in public shelters.

The storm comes a week after Tropical Storm Meari tore through Japan, killing 22 people and injuring at least 80 others. Downgraded from a typhoon after hitting the southern island of Okinawa, Meari caused floods, triggered deadly landslides and forced about 10,000 people to evacuate their homes.