Typhoon Ampil continued its advance toward Tokyo and other eastern areas of Japan on Friday, with the weather agency urging people to prepare for strong winds and heavy rainfall, and transport operators cancelling many train services and flights, Kyodo News reported.
The Japan Meteorological Agency warned of violent winds, mudslides, high waves and flooding, as heavy rain will sharply increase the risk of disaster.
At 10.00am JST Friday, near the end of Japan’s Bon summer holiday period, Typhoon Ampil was located some 100 kilometres east-northeast of Hachijo Island which sits south of the Japanese capital. The typhoon is moving northward at 20kmph according to the weather agency.
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It has an atmospheric pressure of 950 hectopascals at its centre and is packing winds of up to 216kmph.
JR Central suspended all Tokaido Shinkansen bullet train services between Tokyo and Nagoya, central Japan, for the entire day. Beyond Nagoya, the company plans to run a limited number of trains to and from Shin-Osaka via Kyoto in western Japan.
JR East, which operates shinkansen in eastern, northeastern and central areas, will also cancel some bullet trains on parts of the Tohoku, Joetsu, and Yamagata lines from the afternoon.
Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways said they cancelled approximately 650 international and domestic flights to and from Tokyo’s Haneda and Narita airports, east of the capital, affecting about 120,000 passengers.
In the 24 hours from 4pm JST Friday, the typhoon is forecast to bring up to 300 millimetres of rain to the Kanto-Koshin region, which includes Tokyo, 200 millimetres in the Tohoku region and 120 millimetres in the Tokai region.