Nearly two million people have been placed under evacuation orders in Japan as Typhoon Dujuan strikes multiple prefectures, including Tokyo. The storm has killed at least one person, triggered landslides, cut power to tens of thousands, and disrupted hundreds of flights.
Japan's Meteorological Agency had warned of an "imminent threat to life" as the typhoon made its approach. Several of those warnings have since been downgraded or lifted in most areas, though a danger-to-life warning remains in place in Oshima Town.
Level four warnings for landslides and level three warnings for heavy rain remain active in Shinagawa Ward, Toshima Village, and Niijima Village. Authorities have advised the public to continue monitoring weather information.
Dujuan has sustained winds of 130 km/h (80.8 mph) and gusts reaching 194 km/h. It is Japan's 25th typhoon of the year and has struck in the middle of a five-day public holiday.
Strong winds caused power outages for more than 50,000 people. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and rail services suspended across affected regions.
A dramatic landing at a Tokyo airport drew applause from passengers after the aircraft touched down safely amid the storm's conditions. One passenger described the landing as "a miracle."
The Yokosuka City Fire Department reported that a woman in her 60s may have been swept away and is believed to have been buried alive at her home. Separately, a man in his 50s was rescued in Sodegaura City, Chiba prefecture, after becoming trapped while clearing debris at a landslide site. He fell into a bamboo thicket along with heavy machinery and was subsequently taken to hospital.
Firefighters in Kanagawa prefecture also responded to a report from a man who said his house had been crushed by a landslide.
The typhoon has forced the cancellation of several public events. Concerts scheduled for Monday at the Rock in Japan music festival were called off, and the Tokyo Game Show, a major video game convention, cancelled its Monday programme.
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has reportedly delayed her planned trip to the United States to monitor the typhoon's impact. She had been due in New York on Tuesday to meet with US President Donald Trump and address the UN General Assembly.
The storm is continuing to travel northward along Japan's Pacific coast. The full extent of the damage may not be known until Tuesday.
Dujuan is the latest in a series of storms in the Pacific. Researchers have noted that warmer ocean temperatures, partly linked to the current El Nino weather phenomenon, can increase the intensity of typhoons by allowing storms to gather more energy and carry heavier rainfall. El Nino does not clearly affect the total number of typhoons but can influence where they form, their strength, and which countries they strike.
Some research suggests Japan has become more exposed to destructive storms. Climate change is not considered to be increasing the overall number of typhoons globally and could even reduce their frequency in some regions. However, those storms that do form are expected to become more intense on average as global temperatures rise.
