Hundreds of flights were canceled and the memorial service for the victims of the atomic bombing in Nagasaki was also affected: the storm “Khanun” swept across parts of Japan. South Korea is also preparing for the tropical storm.
The storm “Khanun” has severely affected public life in parts of Japan and South Korea. In the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, which was hit by heavy rains, 16,000 households were cut off from the power supply, and more than 400 flights were canceled in both countries.
The US military’s typhoon warning system predicted gusts of wind at speeds of up to 130 kilometers per hour for “Khanun”. “Khanun” had previously been downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm. In South Korea, the world meeting of scouts with tens of thousands of participants was evacuated yesterday. “Khanun” is expected to reach South Korean shores on Thursday.
Highest alert level in South Korea
Almost 80 flights were canceled at ten airports in South Korea, and dozens of ferry services were temporarily suspended. The authorities triggered the highest alert level, according to the Ministry of the Interior, the storm should have “direct effects on the entire country” from today to Friday.
In Japan, the weather agency for Kagoshima Prefecture on Kyushu warned of torrential rain and a “dramatic” increase in the risk of “life-threatening landslides”. According to a spokeswoman, the airline Japan Airlines canceled 252 flights, affecting 25,000 passengers. The airline All Nippon Airways said it canceled 96 connections, affecting 10,000 passengers.
The tropical storm also affected commemorations for the victims of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki 78 years ago. The ceremony was significantly smaller than in previous years. Guests from Germany and abroad, including Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, were unable to attend on site this time. For the first time since 1963, the commemoration did not take place in the Peace Park, but in one of the city’s exhibition halls.
Two people died in Okinawa
Last week, two people were killed by storms in the wake of “Khanun” in the southernmost prefecture of Okinawa. Another typhoon was already forming over the Pacific: “Lan” with wind speeds of up to 108 kilometers per hour is likely to move towards Honshu, Japan’s largest island, according to the Japanese weather agency, in the coming days.