Mass evacuation of people as super typhoon heads for Japan

Hundreds of thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate their homes in Japan as a super typhoon headed towards the country on Sunday.

Typhoon Haishen is “absolutely massive” meteorologists have said adding that it could pack winds of up to 252km per hour. 

Officials said evacuation orders and advisories have been issued to more than 100,000 households along the southwestern coast of Japan. 

This is the second powerful storm to hit the region in a week. Typhoon Maysak followed a similar path to Haishen.

Officials said in Kagoshima prefecture, 246,251 people have been evacuated and a further 36,392 people have been evacuated from their homes in Nagasaki prefecture in advance of the typhoon.

“People in affected areas should not hesitate to evacuate their homes, even though they may be worried about being infected with the coronavirus,” a meteorological official told a news conference broadcast by Japanese public broadcaster NHK on Saturday.

The Japan Times reported that several companies, including Sony and Toyota, stopped production and two of Japan’s railway systems said they would suspend some services. 

The storm is also expected to hit the Korean Peninsula, CNN reported. If Typhoon Haishen makes landfall in South Korea, it will be the third storm to make landfall in the country this season. 

According to NOAA’s historical database, the country has never had three typhoons make landfall in a single year.