THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
August 15, 2023 at 19:29 JST
Typhoon No. 7 forced residents to evacuate their homes, caused power outages over a wide area and led to at least one serious injury after making landfall on Aug. 15.
The Japan Meteorological Agency issued warnings of torrential rain, strong winds and mudslides as the slow-moving typhoon makes its way northwest to the Kinki region at 15 kph.
The storm reached land around Cape Shionomisaki, Wakayama Prefecture, just before 5 a.m. and was located near Akashi, Hyogo Prefecture, as of 1 p.m.
At 4:40 p.m., municipal officials of Tottori issued the highest Level 5 warning to more than 181,000 residents in nearly 82,000 households across the city.
With a central pressure of 985 hectopascals, the typhoon was generating maximum sustained winds of 108 kph and maximum instantaneous gusts of 144 kph.
More than 500 millimeters of rainfall was recorded in Odai, Mie Prefecture, and Nachikatsuura, Wakayama Prefecture, in the 24 hours through the morning of Aug. 15.
A linear rainband, which could bring torrential rain, formed over Okayama and Tottori prefectures before 8 a.m.
Similar formations could also develop in a wider area, including the Kanto-Koshin, Chugoku and Shikoku regions.
Up to 350 mm of rain is expected for areas in the Tokai region in the 24 hours through 6 a.m. on Aug. 16.
The forecast is for 300 mm in the Kinki region, 250 mm in the Chugoku region, and 200 mm in the Shikoku, Hokuriku and Kanto-Koshin regions.
The JMA says the typhoon could move northward over the Sea of Japan toward Hokkaido from Aug. 16 through 17.
In the city of Wakayama, a 60-year-old man fell into a coma after being found trapped under a building wall on the morning of Aug. 15. The light metal wall was apparently blown away by the strong wind.
In Shingu, Wakayama Prefecture, nearly 30 people evacuated to the city’s health care facility, one of 22 shelters offered to residents.
All train runs on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen lines were canceled between Nagoya and Okayama on Aug. 15.
West Japan Railway Co. (JR West) suspended services on the Kyoto Line, the Kobe Line and the Osaka Loop Line.
The typhoon cut electricity in a widespread area, with 20,000 houses in Osaka Prefecture and 13,000 houses in Wakayama Prefecture left without power as of 8:30 a.m. on Aug. 15, according to Kansai Transmission and Distribution Inc.
Power outages also hit 5,400 houses in Aichi Prefecture and 32,000 in areas in Mie Prefecture, according to Chubu Electric Power Co.
(Takuya Miyano contributed to this article.)
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Strong winds blow over the Ebisubashi bridge in Osaka’s Chuo Ward on the morning of Aug. 15. (Toshiyuki Hayashi)
