At least four people were killed and 30 more injured today when a powerful
typhoon hit southern Japan.
Torrential rains and strong wind toppled trees and telephone poles and forced
a Vietnamese cargo ship carrying 20 crew to run aground.
Typhoon Chaba, one of the year's strongest storms, with winds up
to 89mph, left 123 homes flooded and another 342,000 households without power
throughout Japan's southernmost main island of Kyushu, about 560 miles south
west of Tokyo.
An 82-year-old man, a 71-year-old man, and a 51-year-old woman died when caught in high winds while another man was found drowned in a river.
The National Police Agency said 30 others were injured, including two civil
servants hurt when winds shattered office windows at Naze city hall on Amami
Oshima island. Two people are still missing.
Winds also blew the roof off one house and burst windows and tore apart
shutters of about 20 other homes and office buildings in the city.
Television footage showed fishing boats turned on their sides as huge waves
crashed into embankments and rice paddies partially submerged in water.
A Vietnamese cargo ship called for help after running aground near Uwajima in
Ehime. The 5,552-ton
Vihan05was carrying a crew of 20, all Vietnamese
nationals.
AP