Monday, October 13, 2014

Tropical Storm Vongfong Battering Japan

By Eric Leister, Meteorologist
October 13,2014; 9:33PM,EDT
 
 
Only a week after Japan was slammed by Typhoon Phanfone, Vongfong brought another round of torrential rainfall and locally damaging winds.
Vongfong, meaning "the wasp" in Cantonese, turned northeastward and moved across Kyushu and Shikoku Monday. Landfall occurred on Kyushu near Kagoshima around 9:15 a.m. Monday, local time, as the storm began to accelerate northeastward.
This northeastward track will continue into Tuesday as Vongfong tracks across Honshu and then eventually into the northern Western Pacific Ocean later Tuesday.
Vongfong blasted through the Ryukyu Islands of southern Japan over the weekend. Wind speeds peaked at 143 kph (89 mph) at the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa. Nearby, about 500 mm (20 inches) fell at Kunigami on Saturday.
A good amount of weakening has brought the strength of Vongfong down to the equivalent of a tropical storm. However, Vongfong still threatens dangerous and life-threatening conditions to Honshu through Tuesday. Wind gusts over 92 kph (57 mph) were reported in Tokyo along with torrential downpours.
Nearly 300 mm (12 inches) of rain fell in only 12 hours in Sumoto, Japan, on Monday. Widespread rainfall of 50-100 mm (2-4 inches) was reported across Kyushu, Shikoku and southern Honshu through Monday evening, local time.

Vongfong was classified as a super typhoon during the middle of last week as it moved through an area of low wind shear and very warm ocean temperatures but has since lost that title. The tropical system had reached the equivalent strength of a Category 5 hurricane, featuring wind speeds greater than 257 kph (160 mph).
"Vongfong became the strongest tropical cyclone we've had all year anywhere on Earth," AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Jim Andrews said.
The strength of Vongfong earlier surpassed that of Super Typhoon Genevieve which, at its most powerful, had sustained winds of 257 kph (160 mph) in the West Pacific.
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The Associated Press reported that at least 37 people have been injured in southern Japan as the cyclone brought torrential rain and locally damaging winds to the region.
As the storm moved across Japan, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) took precautions to prevent problems at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.
To prepare for the storm, TEPCO increased water transfer capacity and water storage capacity to prevent overflow of the accumulated water in the dikes by increasing the dikes' height and, if necessary, transferring the rain water between the dikes or to a different storage tanks to level the rain water, the utility said on its Facebook page.
A continued weakening of Vongfong is expected as the tropical storm moves across mainland Japan; however, the storm will still bring life-threatening conditions areas in its path with the greatest impacts expected in Honshu, as improving conditions are expected in Kyushu and Shikoku Monday night.
The combination of heavy rainfall from Vongfong with recent heavy rainfall from Phanfone will lead to a heighten risk for mudslides across Honshu into Tuesday.
Many areas at risk from Vongfong are still recovering from more than 150 millimeters (6 inches) of rain and strong winds that hammered eastern Japan barely a week ago as Typhoon Phanfone moved through the region.
Tokyo was deluged by 272 millimeters (10.71 inches) of rain ahead of and during the height of Phanfone.
"Phanfone was a huge rainstorm for Tokyo, one of the biggest I can remember," Andrews added, noting moisture from the storm interacted with a stalled front, prolonging the duration of rain.
A soaking rain has already fallen on Tokyo from Vongfong with additional rain expected into Tuesday morning before conditions improve.
AccuWeather.com Meteorologists Meghan Mussoline, Courtney Spamer and Jordan Root and Staff Writer Mark Leberfinger contributed content to this story.

On Social Media
J. Nayer Hardin
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"Tropical Storm Vongfong Slams Japan, 60 Injured And One Missing" ibtimes.com/tropical-storm… #news #Fukushima #radiation #weather #nuclear #USA
Arshad Shaikh
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Typhoon Vongfong lashes Japan - leaving dozens injured and cancelling flights amid pounding winds and rain bbc.in/1tn7Mpa
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