Powerful typhoon hits southern Japan

A powerful typhoon is approaching southern Japan, bringing strong winds and heavy rain to the region, causing power outages, paralyzing ground and air traffic and causing the evacuation of thousands.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said Typhoon Nanmaado was located near Yakushima in the south, with maximum surface winds of 162 kilometers per hour (101 miles per hour), as it moved slowly north to the country’s main southern island of Kyushu, where it could make landfall late Sunday.

Nanmadol is expected to turn east on Tuesday and arrive in Tokyo.

The agency forecast up to 50 centimeters (20 inches) of rain by noon Monday and warned of flooding and landslides.

The agency also warned residents in the affected areas of “unprecedented” strong winds and waves, urging them to evacuate as soon as possible.

Local authorities have so far reported no major losses or injuries.

In Kagoshima, the hardest-hit prefecture, more than 9,000 residents took shelter in evacuation centers on Sunday.

In neighboring Miyazaki prefecture, another 4,700 people were evacuated.

The Kyushu Electric Power Company said more than 93,000 homes on the island of Kyushu were without power on Sunday due to damage to power lines and facilities.

Footage from NHK TV showed that part of the glass wall of a pinball table in Kagoshima City was shattered by strong winds.

Elsewhere in the prefecture, an elderly woman suffered minor injuries when she fell, NHK said.

Hundreds of domestic flights in and out of the region have been canceled as the typhoon moves northeast, with more scheduled to be grounded in western Japan until Tuesday, according to Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways.

Public transport in Kagoshima and Miyazaki, including trains and buses, was suspended all day on Sunday.

The rail operator said bullet trains on the island of Kyushu had been suspended.