Typhoon Jangmi sweeps northwards leaving 23 injured in Japan | Japan
Typhoon Jangmi (also known as Typhoon No. 6) moved northward throughout this week. Prolonged and heavy rains from Okinawa to mainland Japan have led to landslide warnings and river flooding; Japan has issued level 4 warnings for some rivers, indicating the risk of flooding. This level is high enough for municipalities to issue evacuation orders. A three-hour rainfall total in Tokyo’s Chiyoda city on Wednesday reached 105 mm, a record figure for the month. Sustained wind speeds of 80 miles (130 kilometers) per hour were recorded on Monday; This made it a category 1 typhoon, bringing damage and disruption to businesses, transportation, infrastructure and the environment.
As of Wednesday, 23 people were injured, 17 of them in Okinawa. The typhoon damaged 57 homes and caused power cuts to 60,000 homes. In addition, 1.52 million people were advised to evacuate by authorities. The typhoon damaged the outer wall of Himeji Castle, a UNESCO world heritage site in western Japan. The maximum wind speed recorded in Himeji was 56 mph, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. The typhoon has now strengthened into a tropical depression and moved eastward from the islands.
Storm warnings have been made in the Balkans this week, with heavy rain, lightning and hail expected. In Bulgaria, storms spread to the west of the country, including the capital Sofia and surrounding regions. A shower and thunderstorm warning has been issued for most of the region. A worker was struck by lightning following worsening weather conditions on Thursday morning, near the village of Kresna in the country’s southwestern mountainous region. While the heavy rains caused widespread floods, citizens’ houses and basements were flooded. Daily rainfall totals on Thursday are expected to be 30-35mm, with some local totals likely to be 45-50mm. Warnings were also issued in Romania about thunderstorms, heavy rain, hail and high wind speeds. Authorities warned of winds of up to 45 mph and heavy rainfall that could exceed 30-40 mm per hour in some places.
