Photo/Illutration A road is flooded in Miyazaki on Sept. 21 due to heavy rain. (Kento Takahashi)

Powerful Typhoon No. 17 is heading toward the northern Kyushu region after pounding Okinawa Prefecture on Sept. 21 and leaving about 32,000 households without power.

The storm is expected to approach the Kyushu region from the evening to midnight of Sept. 22 and then move in a northeasterly direction over the Sea of Japan, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The agency is calling on people to take precautions against strong winds and heavy rains.

As of noon on Sept. 21, the typhoon was moving over the ocean about 110 kilometers west-northwest of Okinawa's Kumejima island in a north-northwest direction at 20 kph.

It had an atmospheric pressure at its center of 970 hectopascals. The maximum wind speed near the center was 126 kph, with maximum wind gusts of 180 kph.

In Tokashiki, Okinawa Prefecture, wind gusts of 171.7 kph were recorded at 4:54 a.m.

According to Okinawa prefectural government, 12 people had suffered typhoon-related injuries as of 1 p.m. on Sept. 21.

In Naha, an 80-year-old woman fell over in strong winds, slightly injuring her head.

In Uruma, windowpanes at the home of a 22-year-old man shattered while he was sleeping, showering him with glass and slightly injuring his legs.

According to Okinawa Electric Power Co., households hit by power blackouts were mostly located in central and southern parts of the main Okinawa island.

In the Akae district of Miyazaki, 109.5 millimeters of rain fell in one hour until 8:53 a.m.

Predicted rainfall in northern Kyushu in the 24 hours until noon on Sept. 22 was 250 mm, while 200 mm was forecast for southern Kyushu and 180 mm in Okinawa and the Shikoku region.

In the 24 hours until noon on Sept. 23, 300 to 400 mm of rain was expected to fall in southern Kyushu and Shikoku, and 100 to 200 mm was forecast in northern Kyushu, the Chugoku region and Amami.

In Okinawa and northern Kyushu, strong wind gusts of 162 kph were expected on Sept. 22.