NHK, which compiles warnings issued by local authorities, said evacuation instructions of level 4 – the second highest – were in place for people in Kagoshima, Kumamoto and Miyazaki in the southern Kyushu region. The Japan Meteorological Agency had issued the highest alert for the Kagoshima area. It is the first special warning linked to the typhoon issued outside the Okinawa area since the current system began in 2013. Typhoon Nanmadol carried gusts of up to 270 km/h (168 mph) on Saturday near the remote island of Minami Daito, 400 km (250 miles) east of Okinawa Island, the weather service said. The storm is expected to approach or make landfall on Sunday in southern Kagoshima Prefecture in Kyushu and then move north the next day before heading towards the main Japanese island. “There are risks of unprecedented storms, high waves, thunderstorms and record rainfall,” said Ryuta Kurora, head of the Japan Meteorological Agency’s forecasting unit. “Extreme caution is required,” he said, urging people to evacuate in time. “It’s a very dangerous hurricane.” “The wind will be so strong that some houses may collapse,” Kurora added, warning that flooding and landslides could also occur. Japan is in typhoon season and is hit by about 20 such storms a year, usually seeing heavy rains that cause landslides or flash floods. Scientists say climate collapse is increasing the intensity of storms and causing more frequent and intense extreme weather events, such as heat waves, droughts and flash floods.
