Typhoon Dujuan Skirts Japan, Leaving 2 Dead & 4 Missing Amid Landslide Fears

Typhoon Dujuan has swept past Japan's Pacific coast, leaving a trail of devastation including at least two confirmed deaths and four people missing. The powerful storm brought record rainfall, triggered numerous landslides, and caused widespread disruption to transport across eastern Japan.

In response to the escalating threat, over 1.6 million people across six prefectures were urged to evacuate, with the Japan Meteorological Agency issuing its highest-level landslide warning for parts of the Izu Islands, including Oshima. The human toll became tragically clear as police and firefighters launched search operations.

In Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, a 64-year-old woman was found dead inside her home after it was struck by mud and debris from a landslide. Another fatality occurred in Chiba prefecture, where a 51-year-old man died after falling into a bamboo grove while operating heavy machinery to clear mud.

Additionally, a couple in their 70s went missing in Yokosuka after their home was hit by a landslide, and two women are unaccounted for in Miura city following debris flows into their apartment complex. While Typhoon Dujuan, with winds reaching 80mph, skirted past the coastline rather than making a direct landfall, its proximity was enough to rapidly deteriorate conditions across the region.

The Tokyo metropolitan area experienced torrential rain and powerful winds, significantly heightening the risk of landslides throughout the Kanto region and other parts of eastern Japan. Despite the storm now moving northeast and away from the Japanese mainland, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has warned that dangerous conditions would persist through Tuesday, with heavy rain continuing to fall on already saturated ground.

The typhoon, marking Japan's 25th of the year, has delivered extraordinary downpours.

Authorities reported that eight locations recorded breaking rainfall totals over the past 24 hours, leading to extensive flooding. Kimitsu City, for instance, saw over 15 inches of rain.

Social media footage captured the grim reality, showing vehicles and pedestrians struggling through deluged streets. Although earlier warnings of an “imminent threat to life” have largely been downgraded, one remains active for Oshima Town, located about 68 miles south of Tokyo. A significant concern highlighted by authorities is the potential for linear rain bands to form over Kanto and central Japan.

These narrow, concentrated bands of rainfall can dump extraordinary amounts of water over several hours, sharply increasing the risk of flash floods and other rain-related disasters, a phenomenon that has become an increasing worry for Japan in recent years.

The JMA cautioned that total rainfall could exceed the average monthly rainfall for September, setting new records.

Landslide warnings were also issued for Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa, and Shizuoka prefectures, underscoring the ongoing threat. Takuya Hosomi, chief forecaster for the JMA, stated that it was “extremely likely that some form of disaster has already occurred in landslide-prone areas,” urging continued vigilance.

The severe weather also led to the postponement of the equestrian eventing competition at the Asian Games in central Aichi Prefecture until Tuesday.

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