Typhoon makes landfall; 2 U.S. airmen missing, 1 dead after being swept out to sea

That's exactly what I think....surfing.... I wonder if they didn't use common sense and seek shelter. My guess is....no.

taking pictures of the ocean in the middle of typhoon...lovely idea

poor men may they rest in peace and May the Perpetual light shine upon their souls oh Lord

I am sorry to hear the news. Did not U.S. Forces Okinawa warn their people about the danger of approaching the rough sea? Anyway, Japan is a stressful country full of natural disasters.

US military bases do issue warning. I occasionally listen to AFN Okinawa where warning of all possible nature are issued on daily bases. I feel sorry for those boys. Hope remaing two boys are hanging in there.

I remember on Guam that some US military guys would run into a typhoon off 2 Lovers Point and were blown back to land. Crazy!

That's exactly what I think....surfing.... I wonder if they didn't use common sense and seek shelter. My guess is....no.

Typhoons create the best waves.

Be careful out there, folks!

this has allot more to do with plain stupidity than it did a typhoon

Rest in peace, condolences to their loved ones and families.

it is called lack of common sense.

it is called lack of common sense.

If you're not from a place near the ocean, and/or from a place that doesn't experience typhoons (hurricanes/cyclones etc), then this sense isn't so common. In fact, it would be not-common sense, since people from your area wouldn't know about this at all.

Saw a lot of this on Okinawa and yes the locals do it as well. May God bless their souls.

To be fair this occasionally happens under normal conditions when a rogue waves sweep people out to sea. That said, if you want a photo, stand far, I mean really far from the shoreline and use your zoom.

As usual blanket coverage on every channel. Would think armageddon had come....... so far just a bit of wind and rain.

@Strangerland i do not agree, condolences for the family, but in the USA nobody goes outside to make pictures of a field with a hurricane in the background, a huge storm is a huge storm.

What does taking pictures of a field have to do with taking pictures of the ocean? You may be right - taking pictures of a field in a hurricane may not be something people would do, as it would likely be sense common to their area. But people who aren't from the coasts would not have that common sense.

But to address your actual claim, this shows me that a lot of people do indeed take hurricane footage: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=hurricane+videos

I've heard of all kinds of absurd typhoon fatalities, like old ladies going shopping during a storm but surfing? Taking pictures of huge waves? Come on, it doesn't take that much common sense.

One of those boys is my nephew. He is a strong Christian man with a wife and two small children. Please pray for their safe return. He saw his buddy struggling, and went to help him, putting his own safety at risk. His mother and grandmother are beside themselves.

The waves at Kugenuma were excellent Saturday. Yesterday we went in closer to the Aquarium. It was excellent surf, as wind wasvery light.

With the advent of television, books, radio, the internet, the dangers of natural phenomena Are, have been established as, common sense. Stupid is as stupid does. PLUS the military actually orders you do NOT venture outside in a tropical cyclone.

There was one Japanese surfer reported this morning in Japanese news!

Viki: I was there and just finished a surfing set when all the police, fire engines, and ambulances came down.

The waves were fine along most of the beach, but directly in front of the Surfer Pavillion was crazy big. Very few were in there. The rest of us were down near the Aquarium.

I would assume the missing surfer got hit with his board, and then drowned.

Rest in peace men! It seems the typhoon has vaporized already up here in Tokyo.

There was a great line on The Weather Channel earlier:

"People in Tokyo are being advised to stay at home, but there is little chance of that, this being Tokyo and they being Japanese"

http://www.weather.com/news/weather-hurricanes/typhoon-phanfone-heads-towards-japan-weekend-20141004

I hope everyone stays safe.

Sad story for all those caught out.

Nature is wonderful in her anger, and can be just the cure for boredom. As a child, I remember despite parental warnings running outside naked in the teeth of two hurricanes. What a thrill!

Common sense says stay away, sure, but the heart can overrule the mind. For this reason I can understand the attraction for surfers and photographers and lay no blame at their door. They thought they would be all right, but something unexpected must have happened.

Miracles do happen. I hope the missing are found alive.

When I read the headline I thought perhaps the servicemen were engaged in rescue or search operations when they got caught, but I was even more sorry to read that they were out taking pics, and that the Japanese national was out surfing. I've heard of people grabbing their boards and running out to sea during storms or news of tidal waves, but the people taking the pics really should have known that too much can go wrong too quickly, and it's a shame they had to learn that the hard way when there is so much proof of it happening already. RIP to all those killed, and I hope everyone else is safe. There was a bit of huff and puff in Osaka, but nothing serious.

@Callie Robertson Ecklekamp,

I'm sorry that this accident has harmed your relative and his friends. Let's hope that the missing service members will turn up alive soon.

If any of the comments about this story seem insensitive (skip this if you are not new to JT), it is mostly because there is a long-running expectation on here that anytime a typhoon blows through, a number of people die in preventable accidents such as going up on the roof to secure something in the middle of the gale. Since this story seems to fit the usual "I told you so" theme, some of the comments may be construed as uncharitable to your loved one(s). It's sad, but human nature may cause this kind of superiority response from readers who deal with the stress of living long term in a frequently disaster damaged country.

It's all over in Tokyo. Big drama for nothing.

Lovely outside in Tokyo now

@Tora: These military personal were from one of the world's most natural disaster prone places on the planet, from tornados to hurricanes, from blizzards to floods, to landslides, volcanos, tsunami and earthquakes... what ARE you going on about? It's not 'stress' it's common sense!

@UK9393, most of those disasters are localized in various regions of the U.S. My home state in the Midwest does get tornadoes, blizzards and floods, but everything else on that list does not happen there. These military personnel could have been from regions of the country with limited personal experience of typhoons or hurricanes.

The point was that the relatives reading this story and our commentary may not know the background on the frequency of deadly typhoons and the predictable responses on JT condemning storm victims for their careless behavior. The relative said the women in the family are besides themselves, so why continue to rub it in that their son/brother made a mistake.

...drought, wild fires, rock falls, the list goes on, no one is rubbing anything in and to blanket the responses as 'stress' due to living in Japan is not based in fact.

I suspect the most common last words of modern humans are: "This will make a great photo."

@Strangerland i do not agree, condolences for the family, but in the USA nobody goes outside to make pictures of a field with a hurricane in the background, a huge storm is a huge storm.

Are you kidding? You've obviously never read a newspaper or watched a local news broadcast from a city that had just been hit with a hurricane, or ever watched the Weather Channel. They send cameramen, photographers, and reporters out to the shore so that they can have the pounding surf in the background of their shots. How many YouTube videos are out there about some hapless weatherman getting blown over by the wind?

@Torafusu Torasan

Thank you for your kind remarks. :)

I just want those men to be found alive.

Insensitive people usually think so little of themselves that they try to find a way to make others share their misery. I pity them, but their words can't hurt me. Most people don't mean any harm, they are just speaking from experience of the situation, and I totally understand their irritation.

We also did not know the background on the frequency of deadly typhoons. I agree that maybe they should have known better, but the fact still remains that they have friends and family that love them and we are praying for their safe return home.

Callie, reading the comments on site like this is not going to make anyone feel any better or help in the slightest. Please dont let it add to your upset.

I pray the two young men are found safe and sound and you get the chance to tell them how much they worried all of you!

@LaWren

It doesn't bother me to see the comments.

I see negativity every day.

I will not be discouraged without proof.

Without hope and faith, we have nothing. I will continue to pray, as many I know, are doing as well.

I keep checking all sources I have available for information. I know his mother will start a phone texting chain as soon as she knows anything new, but I just can't help myself.

They have released his name, so I am asking everyone to PLEASE, PLEASE, pray for Joshua Shoenhoff (pronounced Shane Hoff) and his family. He is a strong Christian man, he has a wife, two small children, and many, many relatives that love him dearly.

Dear God, please bring Joshua home safely, along with his comrade. Please give the families of these men the courage and faith to get through this most difficult time. Lord I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen

Please keep your god talk to a more appropriate forum. This is not the appropriate place for it.

Strangerland, have a heart. This is a relative of a missing person, even if you dont believe, she does, and writing that helped her. If you cant say anything nice, in this instance perhaps you could keep your atheism to yourself.

Strangerland, I'm sorry if I offended you. Please don't read my posts if they do offend you. You do have a right to your faith or lack thereof. I do not criticize, I am not sure why you choose to do so.