Japan, US blasted by big storms
US Gulf Coast under hurricane watch as strong typhoon strikes large cities
Major storms are lashing western Japan and the US Gulf Coast. Typhoon Jebi yesterday bore down on Japan’s second-largest population centre, grounding flights and halting trains.
Authorities warned that at landfall, it could be the strongest storm to do so in Japan in a quarter of a century.
In the US, Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane today.
Gordon formed into a tropical storm near the Florida Keys as it moved west-northwest at 28 km/h. The storm is expected to reach hurricane strength when it hits the Gulf Coast, including coastal Mississippi, today. From there, it is forecast to move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley tomorrow.
The Japanese typhoon is the 21st of the season, and is striking the area of the country that is home to Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe.
It was expected to make landfall on Shikoku, Japan’s smallest main island, or the Kii Peninsula, carrying winds of up to 162km/h, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. The storm was located about 130km south of Shikoku yesterday, heading north at about 35 km/h.
After hitting western Japan, it is set to speed up further as it passes over the main island of Honshu and into the Sea of Japan, where it will weaken.
While Tokyo will be spared the worst of the storm, authorities have warned of very strong winds and heavy rain even in the capital.
ANA Holdings said it was cancelling 247 domestic and 8 international flights, while Japan Airlines pulled 176 domestic flights.
West Japan Railway Co. halted local trains and planned to stop all local services in the area’s three main cities. Shinkansen high-speed trains between Osaka and Hiroshima were set to be cancelled.
Jebi is predicted to bring heavy rains today.
The US National Hurricane Centre said Gordon was centered 150km west of Fort Myers, Florida. Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 95 km/h.
A hurricane warning was put into effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. As much as 20cm of rain could fall in some parts of the Gulf states until Friday.
The Miami-based centre said the storm is also expected to bring “lifethreatening” storm surge to portions of the central Gulf Coast. A storm surge warning has been issued. The region could see rising waters of 1m to 1.5m.