TOKYO: A powerful typhoon sweeping towards southern Japan on Tuesday triggered the cancellation of hundreds of flights, with officials urging hundreds of thousands of people to seek shelter, reports AFP.
Typhoon Khanun was packing maximum sustained wind speeds of 180 kilometres (112 miles) an hour as it crossed the Pacific Ocean towards the Okinawa region. The Japan Meteorological Agency said the storm, which it described as "very strong", was about 170 kilometres southeast of the regional capital of Naha at 0600 GMT.
Cities across Okinawa advised more than 760,000 people to leave their homes as the weather agency warned waves of up to 12-metres (39-feet) high could pummel the group of islands.
The typhoon was expected to bring fierce winds and heavy rain.
"Many people stay at home because their houses are concrete," a disaster management official at the Okinawa regional government told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"But we are asking people who live alone or in wooden houses in low-lying areas to consider seeking shelter before the typhoon gets bad."
More than 500 flights were cancelled on Tuesday, while regional ferry and bus services were suspended ahead of the typhoon, national broadcaster NHK reported.
