Japan is getting hammered yet again as reports indicate that a typhoon slammed into northern Japan on Tuesday evening, threatening to bring floods to an area still recovering from the 2011 tsunami. Typhoon Lionrock made landfall near the city of Ofunato, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) northeast of Tokyo. It’s the first time a typhoon has made landfall in the northern region since 1951, when the Japan Meteorological Agency started keeping records.
Even before it made landfall, the storm had already paralyzed traffic, caused blackouts and prompted officials to urge residents to evacuate. It was packing winds up to 126 kilometers (78 miles) per hour Tuesday evening. More than 170,000 people were subject to evacuation, including 38,000 in Ofunato, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. READ MORE
