Typhoon Dujuan leaves two dead, 46,000 houses without power in Japan

TOKYO – Typhoon Dujuan left at least two people dead and five injured in Japan, while thousands of houses near Tokyo remained without power after the storm swept through the region, the authorities said on Sept 22.The typhoon moved away from Japan’s coast and out into the Pacific by morning, allowing the authorities to lift or downgrade most heavy rain and landslide warnings.Dujuan had already led to the early closure in the capital of one of the world’s biggest video game trade fairs.Japan often sees strong typhoons in the late summer and early autumn, with other storms this season disrupting some events at the Asian Games being held in the country.The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said one person died in Kanagawa prefecture, near Tokyo, while a local official told AFP that another died in Chiba.Search operations were continuing for four people missing after landslides triggered by torrential rain, according to public broadcaster NHK.More than 46,000 households in Chiba near Tokyo were still without electricity on the morning of Sept 22.Although Dujuan weakened as it moved north-east, it dumped record rainfall in parts of the Tokyo area.Oshima, an island about 120km south of central Tokyo, recorded 832mm of rain over 48 hours, more than double its average rainfall for the whole of September, NHK reported.Rainfall in Tokyo’s Edogawa Ward reached a record 282.5mm over 24 hours.Scientists say human-driven climate change is intensifying the risk posed by heavy rains because a warmer atmosphere holds more water. AFP