Two people killed after Typhoon Melor hits Japan

October 8, 2009

Two people have been killed and tens more wounded after the powerful Typhoon Melor struck the Japanese island of Honshu on Thursday. Melor is the first tropical cyclone to strike Japan in two years.

The typhoon, with winds of up to 200 kilometres per hour (120 mph) made landfall early on Tuesday. Some train services and airplane flights had to be cancelled due to inclement weather.

Electricity was cut off to 40,000 or so homes and 11,000 people were evacuated to emergency shelters, the national Fire and Disaster Management Agency reported. Both confirmed casualties from the storm were hit by debris by trees uprooted by heavy winds.

Melor weakened somewhat as it continued northward up Japan's central island. It is expected to move off the country's eastern coast by nightfall on Thursday.