Residents of Japan’s southwestern islands were cautioned Friday to expect severe gusts and rain as Typhoon Khanun did a U-turn and is now headed east.
The Japan Meteorological Agency reported that Khanun was on its way to Okinawa and adjacent islands, which had already been battered by strong winds and rain earlier this week.
According to the JMA, Khanun had persistent surface winds of 126 kph (78 mph) with higher gusts Friday afternoon. The JMA predicted up to 15 centimeters (5.9 inches) of rain in the Okinawa region by Saturday and up to 30 centimeters (11.8 inches) in the Amami region, an island group belonging to Kyushu’s main southern island, by Sunday.
Khanun was stronger on its initial pass, crossing the islands Tuesday with sustained gusts of 180 kph (111 mph), damaging homes and taking down power. According to the Okinawa prefectural government, 47 individuals were injured, three of whom were seriously. Two deaths were being investigated as typhoon-related but are not listed among the casualties.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday noted the typhoon had had a major impact on daily life. He expressed sympathy for those affected and promised to do the utmost to provide support.
At one point, the storm left nearly 220,000 homes, or about 30%, of those in Okinawa, without power, according to the Okinawa Electric Power Company. As of Friday night, about 22,000 still lacked electricity, but power is expected to be restored to most of them by Saturday, the utility said.
Okinawa’s airport was packed with passengers stranded since earlier this week. About 80 Hong Kong travelers had been stuck in a hotel that lost power Wednesday, said Steve Huen, executive director of Hong Kong-based travel agency EGL Tours. He said 26 of them flew home Thursday, and the rest of the group were to leave Friday.
Khanun’s U-turn will take it away from China, where rain from an earlier typhoon caused severe flooding this week around Beijing.
