Typhoon Trami nears Tokyo after battering western Japan

Airlines cancel more than 1,200 flights and most local trains and bullet trains in central and western areas suspend operations as Typhoon Trami makes landfall southwest of Tokyo

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Typhoon Trami bears down on Tokyo after injuring dozens on outlying islands, bringing transport to a halt and triggering warnings of fierce winds, torrential rain, landslides and floods. Photo: AFP

Published: 12:18am, 1 Oct 2018Updated: 1:46am, 1 Oct 2018

A powerful typhoon headed towards Tokyo late Sunday night after battering western Japan with heavy rain and strong winds, snarling air and land traffic, causing power outages, and forcing evacuations from areas still recovering from recent typhoons.

Typhoon Trami lost some strength after making landfall near Tanabe City, 450km southwest of Tokyo, earlier in the evening, prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to downgrade it to a “strong” typhoon from an “extremely strong” one.

Kansai International Airport in Osaka, western Japan, which was heavily flooded by a typhoon in early September, said it had closed its runways from 11am on Sunday until 6am.on Monday. The airport only fully reopened on September 21 after the last typhoon.

Airlines cancelled more than 1,200 flights, public broadcaster NHK said. And most local trains and bullet trains in central and western areas suspended operations on Sunday, operators West Japan Railway and Central Japan Railway said.

Commuters in Nagoya, central Japan, fight strong winds and torrential rain as yet another typhoon batters Japan. Photo: AP

East Japan Railway said it would halt all train services in the Tokyo metropolitan area from 8pm on Sunday and operations of some bullet trains were also suspended. Tokyo Metro announced it would suspend operation of some subway trains from 9pm.