TYPHOON Lupit pummelled western Japan with strong winds and heavy rain early this morning after making landfall on the southwestern Kyushu region yesterday night, reported Xinhua.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, Typhoon Lupit, the ninth typhoon of the year, is expected to reach the Sea of Japan after making landfall near Kure in Hiroshima Prefecture shortly past 5am local time today, while bringing downpours and strong winds to western, eastern and northern Japan areas through Tuesday.

People are recommended to be vigilant against possible mudslides and floods. Mudslide alerts were issued in some parts of Hiroshima, Shimane, Ehime, and Oita prefectures, and some rivers in Hiroshima and Yamaguchi prefectures are above their flood warning levels.

It is expected that in the 24 hours through Tuesday morning, the rainfall will reach up to 300mm for the Tokai region in central Japan and between 100mm and 180mm in wide areas including the Kanto and Kinki regions.

As of 6am local time, the typhoon was moving northeast at around 45km/hour about 70km south-southwest of Yonago, Tottori prefecture. The atmospheric pressure of Typhoon Lupit was 985 hectopascals at its centre, and the wind speed was as high as 126km/h. – Bernama, August 9, 2021.