Flights cancelled, evacuations urged as Typhoon Dujuan hits Japan

Typhoon Dujuan has claimed at least two lives in Japan, according to authorities. The storm, which brought violent winds of 144km/h (89mph), was moving away from the country by Tuesday morning, allowing officials to reduce most heavy rain and landslide warnings. However, the typhoon had already caused significant destruction, including multiple landslides in the city of Yokosuka near Tokyo.

One woman in her 60s died when mud flowed into her home, while another person lost their life in Chiba. Search operations are ongoing to find four people missing after the landslides.

The typhoon has left almost 50,000 households in Chiba, near Tokyo, without electricity. Japan Airlines canceled 135 flights, while All Nippon Airways grounded 140. Over 1.6 million residents in and around Tokyo were urged to evacuate on Monday, though the evacuations were not mandatory.

Dujuan weakened as it moved northeast but dumped record rainfall in parts of the Tokyo area. The island of Oshima, about 120km south of central Tokyo, received 832mm of rain over 48 hours, more than double its average for the entire month of September. Tokyo's Edogawa ward saw rainfall of a record 282.5mm in 24 hours.

Scientists attribute the intensification of such extreme weather events to climate change, stating that a warmer atmosphere holds more water. Typhoon Dujuan is part of a series of extreme weather events, including unusual floods and tropical cyclones, that have occurred globally this year.