Japan braces for heavy rain as typhoon heads east along Pacific coast
A typhoon that made landfall twice in western Japan on Friday continues to advance eastward along the Pacific coast, causing rail service and other traffic disruptions with heavy rainfall and heightened risks of floods and landslides across the country, Kyodo reported.
Intense and prolonged downpours are expected to particularly affect regions in central and eastern Japan through Friday night, the weather agency said. Rainfall in the 24 hours through Saturday noon is forecast to reach up to 200 millimeters in the Kanto-Koshin area, which includes Tokyo, and 150 mm in the Tokai area.
Torrential rain hit parts of western and northeastern Japan on Friday morning, caused by warm humid air around the edges of Typhoon Peipah in addition to an extended weather front near the main island, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The village of Shimokitayama in Nara Prefecture logged a record 84.5 mm of rain in an hour.
Bullet train services on the Tokaido Shinkansen Line were partially suspended as precipitation in central Japan exceeded safety limits, its operator JR Central said.
The typhoon made landfall near Sukumo in Kochi Prefecture early Friday and then again in northern Wakayama Prefecture around 9 a.m.
