Typhoon pummels Kanto region; one reported dead, 40 injured

I hope everyone is ok

I had to go to my doctor's office yesterday in Yokohama for monthly blood work. I would have rescheduled but his office will be closed for the next 10 days and yesterday was his last day open. It took me 4 hours to get from around Hachioji to Sakuragicho. At Sakuragicho there were no buses running. A security guard for the station came and told everyone it would be a three hour wait so I had to look for a cab. There were no cabs and the line for a taxi was wrapped around the little islet, across the road and back towards the station. I walked to Bashamichi station (in the blistering heat) and I stopped to help a handful of travelers with their suitcases trying to figure out what was going on. Public transportation had virtually stopped and I felt so bad I couldn't help them other than to tell them to wait for the train to Shin-Yokohama although there were barely any moving. The trains were at a standstill so I thought okay well I'll walk as close to the Yamate area as I could and hopefully I could grab a cab along the way (did I mention it was ridiculously hot?). I got up closer to the china town area and flagged down a cab but in about 10 minutes he'd barely passed a block so he told me it would be really expensive to go through the traffic so he basically said it would be faster to walk. So I got out and walked up that damn hill. It was absolutely plastered with tree branches, foliage and the occasional roof tile. Even around the foreign cemetery there were broken fences and an entire tree downed near the bay look-out. The trip home was not as bad but was absolutely packed.

I moved to Japan a few months after 3/11 so I can't speak to that but since I've been here I've never seen that much public confusion, transportation disruption. Everyone was just standing around wondering what to do. The roads weren't moving. The trains weren't moving. No buses. No taxi's. One of the hottest days of the year.

What to do? If I were a tourist or just visiting the area I would have almost been in a panic. It was really bizarre, usually Japan handles these types of things really well. Was anyone else around Sakuragicho or Yokohama yesterday? I feel like something must have gone extra wrong there yesterday that I'm just not getting.

I'd have to argue against the Workers compensation issue. Since if you recall, back in 2011, everyone had to walk home following the earthquake. Now... if you had an accident during that journey back, you could argue that there was no other viable mode of transport.... right ? Likewise today, as Trains were not running until certain times during the day, you could also argue, that you were under a contractual obligation to be at the Office at a set time - particularly if you were a Contractor and had no other instructions from your Employer.

Tariq - it's difficult to think of a reason to disagree with that sentiment. I'm with you.

I wish for safe Japan.

Surprise surprise yet again only the Asakusa-sen is still not running. And it's 19:00.

How come all the other lines including those that run overground like JR can get their act together?

The Asakusa-sen is guaranteed to stop running even when there is heavy rain.

Until they start running their own dedicated metro timetable this line is forever cursed by inclement weather.

HIT, not hot...sorry!

The well-built structures in the Bahamas got zapped, too. The Category 5 that hit the Bahamas was just under 300 kilometers per hour, and it stayed there for 40 hours. There isn’t much elevation there, either. Dorian was a cat 5 only because there is no cat 6. The storm that hit Tokyo was strong, but not like that.

I have seen numerous different sites and the damage that the hurricane brought to the Bahamas, and I saw no concrete buildings blown over or destroyed by the wind. Water damage is another thing.

Buildings can and are built, to withstand even Cat. 5 storms, they cost money though, and that is one of the biggest reasons that places like the Caribbean and P.I. experience so much damage in these storms.

These people need help rebuilding, yet I would hope that governments would do more than just put a roof over their heads, give them a structure that will withstand the next one that will ultimately hot.

It's not a thought experiment. It's a woefully predictable pattern of ridiculously irresponsible behaviour, carried out by daft old men who should know better.

And it doesnt just happen during typhoons either, it happens yearly in winter with them climbing on the roof to clear off snow.

@Velius Mate, I've been here 25 years, and every year, almost without exception, we get a story of a venerable elder who thought it was a good idea to get on his roof during a typhoon. We very often get "80+ year old who was riding his bike along the banks of a canal in 180 mph winds was swept away" stories, and we're expected to feel sorry for them as though it wasn't completely avoidable.

It's not a thought experiment. It's a woefully predictable pattern of ridiculously irresponsible behaviour, carried out by daft old men who should know better.

Those deaths do not need to happen. But they do. Every year. And I'm not the bad guy for wishing they'd just stay inside till the wind eases off a bit.

@Derek Grebe - Yes it’s easy to come up with many “obvious” thought experiments like that. But I was wondering about the data, since “going up to the roof during typhoons” is discussed here like it’s a thing. But as far as I’ve read so far, deaths are from crushing and other physical trauma like that (toppling trees, falling objects) and not falling down from heights, per se.

Is there such a thing as a Category Five? I've never heard of one...

They get them in Alabama all the time!

I didn't get much sleep last night because the high winds are rain rattled the windows and my poor doggo was so scared by the noise that she tried to hide under me for protection lol xD

That is interesting, my hamster did not care at all, just doing his hamster business as usual. Now and then he stopped and listened to a very loud rattle from the amado, like: "man, what's this noise all about" and then just went on with his business. Which helped myself a lot in calming down, actually.

Apparently there's a bloody tree on the Yokohama line so it's not running. Seriously can we not just kick it off I got places to be.

If there's blood on the tree, someone must have been seriously hurt... Id be more concerned about that.

It doesn't literally mean there's blood. I assume he was meaning bloody as in damned, blasted, effing, etc... ;)

It was strong, but it wasn’t a Cat-5 like Dorian that just was completely catastrophic and just pummeled and destroyed the Bahamas.

And if the people of the Bahamas had built their houses out of materials that could withstand the winds, it would not have been as catastrophic as it was.

Fortunately here in Japan, and in particular in Okinawa, where Cat 5 Typhoons come more often than not, we are able to weather the storm in relative safety. Even a Cat 5 storm is not going to blown down a steel-reinforced, concrete structure. I know, I have lived through a number of them over the years, and the worst things to happen are power outages, and in some cases blown out windows, because people forget or dont know to open a window a crack on the opposite side to stop pressure from building up.

not sure why people think it was strong ..? I didnt feel a thing.. woke up to some annoying rain which made not want to do my early morning run but normally cycled to work...

It was strong, but it wasn’t a Cat-5 like Dorian that just was completely catastrophic and just pummeled and destroyed the Bahamas.

@taj: Typhoon Vernon for 27th-28th August 1993. Typhoon Violet for September 23rd 1996.

@taj: Guess you were out of town. Apologies I was actually a few days long for 1993, it was August 27th 1993. There was so much rainfall that the Imperial Palace Moat broke its banks and the Marounouchi Line was flooded. The second one was either on one of the Holidays in September (so would have been the 15th or 23rd) back then. I applaud your sarcasm.

Thanks, Yubaru! Yeah, where I live in Yamato, there wasn't much damage that I can see. I walked my dog about 9:00AM and saw just some debris from trash (put out for Monday morning collection) and leaves. But like others commenting, I didn't get much sleep last night because the high winds are rain rattled the windows and my poor doggo was so scared by the noise that she tried to hide under me for protection lol xD Ugh...work is gonna be fun today on 3 hours of sleep.

Vellus - Just think about it. Does anything about the idea of going up onto a roof, unsecured, probably via a ladder, in winds of 200kmh+ sound like a prudent idea to you?

not sure why people think it was strong ..? I didnt feel a thing.. woke up to some annoying rain which made not want to do my early morning run but normally cycled to work...

not really sure about all that train chaos... that said my office is empty , its probably more got to do with actually having a valid excuse not to show up ....

For those who discussed the danger of going on the roof during a typhoon, is the danger because of the risk of losing one’s balance in the winds and falling off? Or heavy objects hitting you? I’m genuinely curious since I honestly don’t know. This was the strongest storm I’ve witnessed (in Japan for a year so far only). Couldn’t sleep until 5am.

I can however provide a page that explains company liability for bicycling, and discusses how they can set policy regarding cycling to work:

Thank you, StrangerLand. Great/useful link. I'm pushing for my employer to including bicycle parking to the priority list when planning our next office move. Our current complex has none and only created a tempory parking space in the few months immediately after the 2011 earthquake.

Millions of workers across the country cycle to the nearest station every working day?

yes, and they have to pay for parking at the eki every month. another scam.

Millions of workers across the country cycle to the nearest station every working day?

That sounds plausible.

Kept me up the whole night with the building shaking and from the noise of the wind and rain... I can't remember ever experiencing a typhoon as intensely powerful in Tokyo as I did last night.

We live in the Chiyoda ku area and from what I could gather from the NHK reports and SNS posts throughout the night. Tokyo's eastern wards that are closer to the Tokyo Bay area were hit harder than the western wards.

Apparently there's a bloody tree on the Yokohama line so it's not running. Seriously can we not just kick it off I got places to be.

If there's blood on the tree, someone must have been seriously hurt... Id be more concerned about that.

Many companies do not allow commuting by bike, or require that employees get explicit permission,

.

I'd like citation for that.

Well, I can't give you a specific citation that shows many companies do not allow this. It's just something I know from having been in companies that do not allow commuting by bike without explicit permission.

I can however provide a page that explains company liability for bicycling, and discusses how they can set policy regarding cycling to work:

http://machi-gr-blog.com/%E8%87%AA%E8%BB%A2%E8%BB%8A%E9%80%9A%E5%8B%A4%E4%B8%AD%E3%81%AE%E4%BA%A4%E9%80%9A%E4%BA%8B%E6%95%85%E3%81%A8%E4%BC%9A%E7%A4%BE%E3%81%AE%E8%B2%AC%E4%BB%BB

It is true that companies need employees to register their commute route, as that is covered by worker's compensation. If you register as taking the train, collect the train pass money and then cycle to work, any accident won't be covered by workers comp, however if you register as cycling, it would be.

as far as all that goes, its a simple law change, if needed at all. The train and auto industry in Japan keeps allot of people enslaved and a few get very rich, some of the hotel chains actually own the train lines. The shakin system is a scam, but a very good one.

Eight surfers were rescued amid high waves off Shizuoka after they were swept out to sea, local officials said.

"Two helicopters were dispatched while special rescuers rushed out to sea," a fire department spokesman told AFP. "We sent two of them to hospital but no one was in danger of dying."

No, this is not correct. The poor s0ds who got sent out to fly helicopters in a severe typhoon were in danger of dying to save a bunch of rich kids who thought Mother Nature was there to give them some cranking froth . And they didn't need to be, if the nobs on boards had acted like grownups for once in their lives. Will they be billed for the expense of the rescue mission?

I'm putting typhoon surfers in the same boat as "Fell-off-the-roof-in-a-typhoon-man" and "Got-heatstroke-checking-her-rice-field-at-1pm-on-the-hottest-day-of-the-year-woman".

Entirely avoidable, and it's on them. Don't risk other people's lives with your own irresponsibility.

Rode an Adiva 300 and a Piaggio MP3 during blizzards and typhoons, no problem at all.

Better than getting stuck with thousands of other people or having a hard time to find accomodation.

Many companies do not allow commuting by bike, or require that employees get explicit permission,

I'd like citation for that.

It is true that companies need employees to register their commute route, as that is covered by worker's compensation. If you register as taking the train, collect the train pass money and then cycle to work, any accident won't be covered by workers comp, however if you register as cycling, it would be.

I did see more people than usual cycling this morning, dodging downed leaves and branches, but certainly still safer than the overcrowded platforms.

Which is pretty ridiculous considering the stress and aggravation of Tokyo train and car travel, don’t you think?

Depends on the company. For some, the liability issue will be more important than the issues above.

Ride a bike in 100+ km winds you would have to be mentally deranged, or fixing you tv antenna. Commonsense not a strong point for sum, Jesus my house was rocking and not in a good way, mounting my bike no way even driving was off the board. I'm glad my Chiawawa had a lead on, more a kite this morning actually pretty funny seeing him get picked up by a gust.

Many companies do not allow commuting by bike, or require that employees get explicit permission, as companies are legally responsible for employees during commute to/from work, and they don't want to take on the liability of a bicycle.

Which is pretty ridiculous considering the stress and aggravation of Tokyo train and car travel, don’t you think?

No but you probably can after the typhoon when nothing else working.

Many companies do not allow commuting by bike, or require that employees get explicit permission, as companies are legally responsible for employees during commute to/from work, and they don't want to take on the liability of a bicycle.

Can you ride a bicycle in a typhoon?

No but you probably can after the typhoon when nothing else working.

The Resident,

If you are talking about Tokyo then I personally remember 2 larger Typhoons in September 1993 and September 1996 that caused far greater damage that seen this morning. 

I don't remember any in '93 or '96 that hit Tokyo that badly, but maybe it's my poor memory or I was out of town. Which ones are you referring to?

The typhoon wasn't so bad itself, but my train this morning was so crowded and I got so hot and crushed I thought I was going to throw up. I felt better when I got off, but I had to sit down for about five minutes before I could make the five minute walk to work.

Adachi-Ku wasn’t bad, the last Tokyo typhoon seemed much stronger. About the train stations, don’t see the logic of hurry up and wait. You know it’s going to be packed so take your time and tell the boss, I got delayed because of the trains, buses, etc.

For the people that do not need to be travel, go home. For the others that have a genuine requirement to travel thing about that?

Been here nearly 20 years never had my house shack like last night. Garden is a mess and the orchid next door while nor levelled has many trees ripped out of the ground. That was an undeniable beauty by any definition. Thought about adjusting my TV thing on the roof but decided I will wait untill I'm 70+

My local line has stated it will resume at 11am. It is one of Tokyo's most crowded lines. You'd be lucky to even get into the station before midday, better less get on a train. My work is cancelled, so I don't really care. However, my Mrs has been ordered to be on the first train and get to work by the Japanese company she works for. What a surprise that is, NOT!

TheLongTermer - Tokyo is not that far from surrounding suburbs and could easily be connected by ebike routes.

Um, did you actually think about this statement? How will that contribute to the transport problems of typhoons? Can you ride a bicycle in a typhoon?

The rail companies announced yesterday they were suspending services until 8 a.m. So what's the point of millions of commuters showing up early and clogging the system just as it struggles to recover? Just mosey on down the station from 9, and if there's still a crush, relax outside and have a coffee til the crowd thins.

how'd they come up with that name?

Funny thing too is that here in Japan, even though they are a part of the Committee that chooses names for typhoons for any given season, use numbers locally for reporting them in weather reports.

how'd they come up with that name?

Here, read this from Wiki;

The JMA selected the names from a list of 140 names, that had been developed by the 14 members nations and territories of the ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Pacific_typhoon_season#International_names

how'd they come up with that name?

probably the biggest one to hit Tokyo in recent memory. Of course Oki gets them every week, but once they hit the mainland, the mountains break them up

I know my carbon foot print is hardly nothing. I dont drive, hardly consume and have no kids

Yeah, and if everyone thinks like you there will be NO future for anyone! Consider that, your "elitist" comment is not going to save the planet!

maybe climate change is real; I have never seen a typhoon so big

Maybe you, but that is not a "big" typhoon, really it's not.

I hate it when a typhoon with the strength to stop the trains hits on a non-working day...! I want my day off at 60% pay!

Why 60%? I live in Okinawa and we get more typhoons down here than up there, and most places I know, if you are a salaried employee, get 100%.

@TheLong Termer: You've never seen a Typhoon so big? Well, guess you don't have a TV either and have missed Typhoons that have passed through other Asian countries the last few years. If you are talking about Tokyo then I personally remember 2 larger Typhoons in September 1993 and September 1996 that caused far greater damage that seen this morning. Please don't make this into a propaganda statement.

Hope everybody OK and no damage to property from falling trees etc. Seemed to calm down a lot in Shibuya ber=tween 6-7 this morning and 90% of people I work have made it in OK. Short of people from Chiba, thats about it.

maybe climate change is real; I have never seen a typhoon so big

I think its due to too many people on the planet, who are now getting access to what they see people in the West having

we need the elites to reverse this, and move out of their massive estates, stop driving cars and house all the immigrants on their property

I know my carbon foot print is hardly nothing. I dont drive, hardly consume and have no kids

I hate it when a typhoon with the strength to stop the trains hits on a non-working day...! I want my day off at 60% pay!

This is a real belter. Took my dog out earlier and there are trees down in the park, and the top three metres of a beautiful ancient conifer have been ripped off. (I hope this won't give the council an excuse to fell the whole thing because its geometry is out of whack).

It looks like the Yamanote is going to fire up again, but there's still pretty much total blackout on most other lines.

Back to bed, I think.

Updates can be found here, if anyone's not sure:

https://traininfo.jreast.co.jp/train_info/e/kanto.aspx

Every year this is said.

And damn near every year some idiot dies because they climb up on the roof in the middle of the typhoon.

No roof tile ever built is worth losing one's life over!

Apparently there's a bloody tree on the Yokohama line so it's not running. Seriously can we not just kick it off I got places to be.

8T - yup every year it's said, and every year someone goes up on the roof to try and repair whatever got blown off. It's kinda like having the sports day practice at the schools when there's a heat wave and kids getting ambulanced off for heat exhaustion. Humans are a weird lot, it's amazing we've survived this long.

Just curious. Do people still need to go to work or schools? In some countries, eg Hong Kong, schools and offices are closed and people are not required to attend or if they are already there they are sent home when a typhoon has caused severe disruption (this is determined by what warning signal the weather bureau has put up). How about in Japan?

Be safe people! And please stay off the roof!

Every year this is said.

My trains are delayed but running (yay?).

Wonder how many people are going to make it in on time.

Only got 2 hours of sleep so this should be a fun Monday.

didn't get much sleep last night. That may have been the strongest I've ever experienced.

It’s 7am and it’s not over yet. The wind is still strong and gusty. I can’t see the trains resuming at 8am. I have no doubt there will still be hundreds of thousands (possibly millions) of people lining up at train stations to get onto whatever trains are running. My work has been cancelled. I’m gonna finish my coffee and go back to bed. Stay safe people.

Thanks, Yubaru. I live in the Tokyo area. It was a windy night, but nothing serious seemed to have happened in my specific area.

I hope everyone else faired as well as we did.

Be safe people! And please stay off the roof!