As per report at least seven people have been killed and 15 left missing after the most powerful typhoon to hit Japan in decades paralyzed Tokyo, flooding rivers and putting millions under evacuation warning before it ploughed up the north-eastern coast. Meanwhile authorities lifted rain and flood warnings for the Kanto region around a becalmed Tokyo before dawn on Sunday but imposed them on areas further north after super typhoon Hagibis blasted through the capital.
Furthermore attention focused on Fukushima, where Tokyo Electric Power Co overnight reported irregular readings from sensors monitoring water in its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, which was crippled by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Reportedly seven people died in Chiba, Gunma, Kanagawa and Fukushima prefectures surrounding Tokyo, according to public broadcaster NHK. Further among them was a man in his 60s who was found with no vital signs in a flooded apartment in Kawasaki.
Moreover storm surges and high waves raised sea levels by more than a metre along some stretches of the coast, and waters in Tokyo Bay were up by 50cm, increasing the danger of severe flooding in the city centre. Perhaps the Tokyo metropolitan government opened an evacuation centre in Tokyo’s Ueno district for foreign tourists stranded by the shutdown. Organizers cancelled Saturday’s qualifying session for the Suzuka grand prix, although the race was expected to take place on Sunday afternoon.
