Japan on alert as typhoon due today

Half of Japan was under weather advisories Saturday as a “violent typhoon” named Nanmadol edged toward the country’s south, with landfall expected today.

The storm was likely to traverse almost the entire length of Japan after making landfall, bringing with it “heavy rain, strong winds and high waves,” according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Nanmadol was about 280 miles east of Okinawa on Saturday afternoon, with maximum sustained winds of about 123 mph near its center and peak gusts reaching 168 mph.

The agency classified the storm as a “violent typhoon,” its most severe category of storm based on wind speeds. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center, a U.S. military command in Hawaii, designated Nanmadol a “super typhoon” this month.

Parts of Kyushu, the southernmost of the country’s four main islands, were under evacuation orders, the Japan agency said. Forecasters are expecting heavy rain, flooding and landslides, airlines grounded flights and authorities suspended train service in many parts of Japan.

After passing over Okinawa, Nanmadol is expected to weaken and become a “very strong typhoon” by the time it reaches mainland Japan, the meteorological agency said. Maximum winds of 112 mph were anticipated at that point, it said.

It is projected to curve northeastward and trace almost the entire length of the main islands that make up Japan. Nearly the entire country was in the storm warning area.

The storm will probably head back to sea Wednesday or Thursday, according to the meteorological agency. Forecasters in South Korea said it could also affect southern parts of the country that were battered by Typhoon Hinnamnor.