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Representational Picture (Photo: Bloomberg)
Japan faced severe disruptions on Friday as torrential rains from Typhoon Shanshan hammered various regions, halting transportation and forcing factory closures. The storm also triggered flood and landslide warnings across the country.
Regarded as one of the most powerful storms to strike Japan, Shanshan made landfall in Kyushu on August 29, according to a Reuters report.
Major impact on production and transport
The storm’s impact was far-reaching, prompting Toyota to shut down operations at all its domestic plants. Other companies, including Nissan, Honda, Renesas, Tokyo Electron, and Sony, also suspended production at select facilities.
Reuters noted that major airlines such as ANA Holdings and Japan Airlines grounded hundreds of domestic and international flights. Additionally, several ferry and rail services, including the bullet train between Tokyo and Nagoya, were cancelled.
Casualties and power outages
Japan’s disaster management agency reported that the storm had claimed three lives and injured 78 people over the past few days. Additionally, power outages affected 125,000 households across seven districts in Kyushu.
Unprecedented rail disruptions
Kokoro Osoegawa, a 21-year-old university student, found herself stranded at the entrance of an abandoned shopping mall near a rain-soaked train station. “My parents are coming to pick me up since there are no trains due to the typhoon,” she told Reuters. “I’ve never seen all the trains stop before.”
Authorities issued evacuation advisories to more than 4 million people, mainly in the severely impacted Kyushu region, but also in Tokyo and Yokohama.
Typhoon Shanshan’s path
Typhoon Shanshan is expected to move toward the central and eastern regions, including Tokyo, within the next two to three days. This follows Typhoon Ampil, which led to blackouts and evacuations earlier this month, Reuters reported.
On Thursday, approximately 250,000 households in seven prefectures were without power, according to Kyushu Electric Power Co. However, many had power restored by Friday. The typhoon’s slow movement across Japan, coupled with record-breaking rain in areas distant from the storm’s centre, has raised concerns among authorities.
Visuals showed flooded streets and halted rail services on the Kyushu network and the Tokaido Shinkansen, which runs between Tokyo Station and Shin-Osaka Station. The storm has crippled transportation, delivery services, and businesses across southwestern Japan, leaving passengers on the Tokyo-Hiroshima rail line stranded for nearly 13 hours.
Flight cancellations and business closures
Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways, two of the nation’s largest airlines, cancelled 1,127 domestic flights on Thursday and Friday. Most supermarkets and shops in Kyushu remained closed. In Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures, about 2,400 stores belonging to Japan’s top three convenience store chains temporarily ceased operations.
Evacuation of millions in Japan
In response to the typhoon’s severity, authorities issued evacuation orders to over 3.3 million people across Japan, focusing on the hardest-hit areas in Kyushu, as well as central and eastern regions, including Tokyo and Yokohama. Officials warned of potential landslides and river flooding due to the heavy rainfall. However, by Thursday, only about 30,000 people, mostly in Kyushu, had evacuated, according to disaster management minister Yoshifumi Matsumura.
(With inputs from agencies)
First Published: Aug 30 2024 | 6:01 PM IST
