Central Japan braces for Typhoon Lan arrival with air, rail cancellations

West Japan Railway

14/08/2023 07:28

TOKYO, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Japan braced for Typhoon Lan
to make landfall, with airlines and railways cancelling services
in central areas of the country's main island, where it is
expected to strike on Tuesday.
    Lan, the seventh tropical storm of the season, was over the
Pacific Ocean near central Japan, headed northwest at 15
kilometres per hour (9.3 miles per hour) on Monday, with a
maximum wind speed of 139 kph and gusts of up to 195 kph, the
Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.
    The outer edge of the storm is forecast to reach the coast
of Wakayama prefecture around 9 a.m. (0000 GMT), then head north
over the major population centres of Osaka and Kyoto. The JMA
warned of heavy rain and winds, and the risk of floods and
landslides.
    Japan Airlines  9201.T  and ANA Holdings  9202.T  cancelled
many flights in the path of the storm. West Japan Railway
 9021.T  announced the suspensions of Tokaido Shinkansen bullet
train routes between Nagoya and Osaka all day on Tuesday, as
well as the Sanyo Shinkansen between Osaka and Okayama.
    The storm comes on the heels of Typhoon Khanun, which
meandered in the northwest Pacific for days before lashing
southern Japan, then heading north to batter South Korea, China,
and the Russian Far East.
    Typhoon Lan threatens to disrupt one of Japan's busiest
travel seasons during the Obon summer holiday, when many people
take vacations and return to their hometowns.
    Universal Studios Japan said it would close its theme park
in Osaka on Tuesday, while the Koshien national high school
baseball tournament, a summer tradition watched by millions,
cancelled all games for the day.

 (Reporting by Rocky Swift. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
 ((rocky.swift@thomsonreuters.com;))