TOKYO, August 9 (RIA Novosti) - Japan Meteorological Agency has issued a "special warning" for Kii Peninsula's southern Miye Prefecture on the Honshu Island due to the advancing Halong super typhoon.
Last summer, Japan introduced a new scale for measuring natural disasters. The Meteorological Agency started to use a “special warning” for natural disasters that are very likely to cause heavy damage. The warning calls on the people and local governments to take the necessary action and evacuate quickly. "Special warning" is only attributed to disasters that occur once in dozens of years.
Special warning has earlier been issued for the Shikoku Island, which expects about 700 millimeters of rainfall, Kyushu, and the Kinki region of Japan’s main island Honshu.
Halong received the 11th category in Japan and was unofficially classified as super typhoon, meaning wind speeds of at least 130 knots (150 miles per hour).
The typhoon is only nearing the southeast of the Kyushu Island, but has already left about 4,500 of its homes without power.
Some 140,000 residents of southern Japan have been advised to leave their homes, while about a dozen airlines have cancelled at least 460 flights in the area, according to earlier Japanese media.
The evacuation recommendation spread on the prefectures of Tokushima on the Shikoku Island, Kochi, and parts Hiroshima and Osaka. Those regions fear the heavy rains may cause landslides.
With the central pressure of 950 millibars and the speed of 90 miles per hour (40 meters per second), Halong is expected to approach Shikoku by Saturday night and pass most of Japan’s territory over the weekend, reaching its northwestern regions by Monday.
Last month, the southern and central regions of Japan were hit by typhoon Neoguri, which was declared the most powerful of all that passed over the Japanese archipelago in July. Neoguri claimed three lives and left 63 people injured.
