Three dead as Typhoon Shanshan hits southern Japan

Three people are still missing after a landslide in Aichi prefecture. Getty Images

Tokyo, August 29 — A powerful typhoon has made landfall in Japan, with three people already confirmed dead.

Shanshan landed in Kagoshima prefecture, in the southern island of Kyushu, at around 08:00 local time (23:00 GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.

The agency has issued its rare "special warning" for the most violent storms, warning of landslides, flooding and large-scale damage. High winds of up to 252 km/h (157mph) have been reported on the island.

A couple in their 70s and a man in his 30s have died. Both were part of a family of five whose home in Gamagori in central Japan was swept away late on Tuesday, prior to the typhoon's landfall.

Their other two family members - two women in their 40s - were rescued after all-night recovery efforts, local broadcaster NHK reported.

As much as 600mm of rain over 24 hours has been forecast in some areas of Kyushu, home to 12.5 million people.

Some 255,00 houses are now without power, the island's utility operator said.

Videos online show large trees swaying, tiles blown off houses, and debris being thrown into the air as heavy rains lashed the island.

At least 39 people have been injured in Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures, NHK said.

Major carmakers like Toyota and Nissan shut down their plants on Thursday, citing the safety of its employees as well as potential parts shortages caused by the storm.

Hundreds of flights to and from southern Japan have been cancelled. Some high-speed train services have also been suspended.

Earlier this week, local governments issued evacuation advisories to 810,000 people in the central Shizuoka prefecture on Japan's main island of Honshu.

A further 56,000 were told to leave their home in Kagoshima on Kyushu, the fire and disaster management agency said.

JMA expects the storm to approach Japan's central and eastern regions, including the capital Tokyo, around the weekend.

Special typhoon warnings, like the one issued for Shanshan, are declared in Japan in cases of extraordinarily powerful storms. The same warning was issued in September 2022 as Typhoon Nanmadol approached Kyushu - the first such warning declared for a region other than Okinawa.

Shanshan comes in the wake of Typhoon Ampil earlier this month, which caused only minor injuries and damage but still disrupted hundreds of flights and trains.

Before that, northern parts of Japan saw record rainfall when Tropical Storm Maria hit Honshu island.

Typhoons in the region have been forming closer to coastlines, intensifying more rapidly and lasting longer over land due to climate change, according to a study released last month.