TOKYO, Japan - Heatstroke has killed two people in Japan, officials said Wednesday, as nearly half a million homes struggled with electricity outages after a powerful typhoon battered Tokyo and the surrounding area.
A 93-year-old woman and a 65-year-old man were found unconscious at their respective homes on Tuesday and were later confirmed dead by doctors, an official from Chiba prefecture east of Tokyo told AFP.
At least 48 other people were sent to hospital for symptoms of heatstroke Tuesday, she said, as the mercury hit above 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) in areas where electricity is still out after Typhoon Faxai hit on Monday.
By Wednesday morning, some 456,000 households were still without power, Tokyo Electric Co. (TEPCO) said in a statement.
"Please take refuge in cool places and drink water to avoid heatstroke," TEPCO said, apologizing to customers for the outage.
A local official said 84,000 households were also without water on Tuesday because several water purification plants had no power, but "water supply is recovering gradually" on Wednesday as electricity is restored.
With help from the military, officials dispatched water tanker trucks to the affected areas, she said.
Typhoon Faxai powered into the Tokyo region in the early hours of Monday warning, packing record winds that prompted warnings for tens of thousands of people to leave their homes.
The storm killed two people, though it caused relatively little damage in Tokyo beyond disrupting the morning commute.
In Chiba it brought down power lines, and it left 17,000 passengers stranded at Narita airport outside the capital after trains running to and from the transport hub were suspended.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
TOKYO, Japan - Around 17,000 passengers were stranded overnight at Tokyo's Narita Airport, an official said Tuesday, after it took a direct hit from a powerful typhoon that caused transport chaos throughout the capital.
The typhoon caused more than 100 flights to be scrapped and road and rail links to the airport were also badly affected, leaving many with no transport options to the city -- 70 kilometers (45 miles) to the west.
Airport spokesman Kei Miyahara told AFP that a total of 16,900 were stuck at the airport at midnight.
"Passengers are now beginning to go home or to their final destinations as buses and trains have resumed operations," Miyahara said early Tuesday.
Narita Airport, located in Chiba to the east of Tokyo, was right in the line of fire of Typhoon Faxai, which brought winds of up to 207 kilometers (129 miles) per hour.
Suburban trains throughout the huge Tokyo metropolitan area were not reopened until 8 a.m. on Monday as officials checked for debris and damage. This sparked pandemonium during the notoriously busy morning commute.
The chaos came as Japan is preparing to host the Rugby World Cup later this month and with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics just around the corner.
There was "minor" disruption to some teams' schedules, admitted a Rugby World Cup spokesman, with Australia's arrival delayed and the England team stuck for hours at the airport.
They passed the time in a particularly English way by playing cricket.
The airport said it delivered 2,000 bottles of water, 19,000 bags of crackers and 18,000 bed rolls to stranded passengers.
"We delivered information in English and Japanese on digital signs, and made announcements in four languages" including Chinese and Korean, said Miyahara.
However, there was mass frustration and passengers complained about a lack of information and long queues for taxis.
The airport operator will review their experiences and draw lessons later, Miyahara said.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
TOKYO - Typhoon Faxai, upgraded to a "very strong" storm with potentially record winds and rain, battered the Tokyo region late Sunday, sparking evacuation warnings to tens of thousands and transport disruption.
Faxai, packing winds of up to 216 kilometers (134 miles) per hour, was bearing down on the Japanese capital and was expected to pass right over the megacity in the early hours of Monday.
Authorities issued non-compulsory evacuation warnings to more than 110,000 people, as forecasters cautioned the rain and wind could reach "record" proportions.
"Please be on full alert against gusts and high waves and be vigilant about landslides, floods and swollen rivers," the agency said in a statement.
Faxai was likely to cause havoc with the Monday morning commute in Tokyo with train operators forced to suspend major lines until at least 8am.
"We need to inspect tracks and check if there is any damage as the typhoon is expected to pass through the region overnight," a train company spokesman told AFP.
The typhoon already caused some travel disruption on its approach with some 100 bullet trains connecting Tokyo with central and western Japanese cities scrapped on Sunday, along with ferries services in Tokyo bay.
Airlines have already canceled more than 100 flights scheduled on Monday while some coastal highways were closed west of the capital in Kanagawa due to the storm, according to local media.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or significant damage but eight surfers were rescued amid high waves off Shizuoka in central Japan after they were swept out to sea, local officials said.
"Two helicopters were dispatched while special rescuers rushed out to sea," a fire department spokesman told AFP.
"We sent two of them to hospital but no one was in danger of dying," he added.
Some department stores and amusement parks, including Tokyo Disneyland, closed earlier than scheduled due to the approaching storm.
Faxai was churning near Izuoshima island, south of Tokyo in the Pacific, at 10:00 pm on Sunday (1300 GMT), traveling north at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour and already producing high waves.
Japan is well used to severe tropical storms and typhoons during late summer and autumn.
Powerful typhoon Krosa lashed western Japan in mid-August, bringing strong winds and torrential rain that claimed one life.
And in late August, heavy rains left three people dead as massive floods also hit western Japan.
Typhoon Faxai comes just as teams begin arriving for the Rugby World Cup, which kicks off on September 20.
The French team managed to sneak in just ahead of the typhoon and reach their training camp near Mount Fuji.
However, the Australian Wallabies squad found their preparations disrupted as the typhoon delayed their scheduled arrival.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
