Typhoon sweeps across Okinawa; 10 injured, 1 dead

Stay safe people!

Stay safe everyone.

A powerful typhoon swept across Okinawa on Tuesday, as residents took refuge from destructive winds, towering waves and storm surges.

Sorry this should read "IS sweeping across Okinawa NOW" and the worst is yet to come as the closest point of approach is scheduled around 3pm to 6pm this afternoon.

actually, it didn't look too bad this morning on telly. but better safe than sorry.

Let's get it straight, typhoons are deadly. They are hurricanes with a different name, as they are in the Pacific, and that's all the difference there is. Typhoon Bart 1999 hit Okinawa really bad and last year, in the Philippines, remember? As of 12:00 local time (04:00 GMT), Typhoon Neoguri was reported to be heading north at a speed of 25 kilometres per hour (15 mph), with gusts of up to 252 kilometres per hour (151 mph). I don't understand the 'play it down' approach, always be ready for the worst case scenario. Keep it tight Okinawa! Stay Safe and be ready Kyushu, Honshu.

“There is a risk of unprecedentedly strong winds and torrential rains. Please refrain from nonessential outdoor activities,” Meteorological Agency official Satoshi Ebihara told reporters at a news conference.

I wish that this nice man from the Met.agency would add "And whatever you do, dont go up on your roof, EVEN IF the TV ariel blows down" ... to his speeches.

I don't get it. What's with all the roof jokes.

@FizzBit

It is not unheard of for older Japanese men to try and protect their houses in the middle of a typhoon. It's silly and I'd say the majority of people stay inside safe. But everyone has a story of a neighbor who is frantically tying down a tarp to his roof or house to keep things from blowing away. I personally have never seen this, but I've heard it time and time again.

Okinawa has just had a tornado warning on the main island. Stay safe people.

I like typhoon season. It's very refreshing in this hot weather but one should never underestimate the power of nature.

The typhoon is still raging at 7:30pm. Lucky I haven't lost power like so many others.

Please take care and stay safe. Okinawa is an awesome place.

Power went out at 9:45 am in my part of Naha and is still out at 8:30 pm. We just drove around and it appears it was just local, about 1-km radius in the area bordering Haebaru. Hope it comes back before the fridge gets too warm, but we enjoyed a candlelight dinner.

If anyone's interested, here's the Japan Meteorological Agency's English cyclone info. page:

http://www.jma.go.jp/en/typh/

Hope Okinawa is alright.

But. Clean air for Tokyo incoming.. for 72 hours..