• A man walks through debris of damaged houses by a tornado caused by typhoon Hagibis in Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo. EPA
    A man walks through debris of damaged houses by a tornado caused by typhoon Hagibis in Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo. EPA
  • A handout photo made available by NASA Earth Observatory of a satellite image showing Typhoon Hagibis spinning toward the north-northwest over the western Pacific Ocean as its outer cloud bands near Japan. EPA
    A handout photo made available by NASA Earth Observatory of a satellite image showing Typhoon Hagibis spinning toward the north-northwest over the western Pacific Ocean as its outer cloud bands near Japan. EPA
  • Men watch the swollen Isuzu River due to heavy rain caused by Typhoon Hagibis in Ise, central Japan. Reuters
    Men watch the swollen Isuzu River due to heavy rain caused by Typhoon Hagibis in Ise, central Japan. Reuters
  • An empty road leading into Shiroko, Suzuka, Japan, seen in heavy rain ahead of Typhoon Hagibis. Reuters
    An empty road leading into Shiroko, Suzuka, Japan, seen in heavy rain ahead of Typhoon Hagibis. Reuters
  • Surging waves generated by Typhoon Hagibis hit against a breakwater at a port in the town of Kiho, Mie Prefecture, Japan. EPA
    Surging waves generated by Typhoon Hagibis hit against a breakwater at a port in the town of Kiho, Mie Prefecture, Japan. EPA
  • Japan's rugby team player Jiwon Koo, carries teammate James Moore in a flooded walkway at a stadium in Tokyo as the team practices ahead of their match against Scotland. AP
    Japan's rugby team player Jiwon Koo, carries teammate James Moore in a flooded walkway at a stadium in Tokyo as the team practices ahead of their match against Scotland. AP
  • A man sleeps next to an airline counter at the domestic terminal of Haneda Airport, after flights were suspended due to Typhoon Hagibis in Tokyo, Japan. Reuters
    A man sleeps next to an airline counter at the domestic terminal of Haneda Airport, after flights were suspended due to Typhoon Hagibis in Tokyo, Japan. Reuters
  • A railway passenger watches a display showing information about Typhoon Hagibis at Shinjuku railway station in Tokyo, Japan. EPA
    A railway passenger watches a display showing information about Typhoon Hagibis at Shinjuku railway station in Tokyo, Japan. EPA
  • Pedestrians using umbrellas struggle against rain and wind in Tokyo. EPA
    Pedestrians using umbrellas struggle against rain and wind in Tokyo. EPA
  • A taxi speeds through water covering a road in the Aoyama district of Tokyo, as the effects of Typhoon Hagibis is started to be felt in Japan's capital. AFP
    A taxi speeds through water covering a road in the Aoyama district of Tokyo, as the effects of Typhoon Hagibis is started to be felt in Japan's capital. AFP
  • Rescuers on a boat patrol the residential area flooded by Typhoon Hagibis, in Ise, central Japan. AP
    Rescuers on a boat patrol the residential area flooded by Typhoon Hagibis, in Ise, central Japan. AP
  • Formula One fan Kazuki Yoshida, 31, from Chiba Prefecture, who evacuated from Typhoon Hagibis, rests at a makeshift accommodation for spectators of the Formula One Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, central Japan. Reuters
    Formula One fan Kazuki Yoshida, 31, from Chiba Prefecture, who evacuated from Typhoon Hagibis, rests at a makeshift accommodation for spectators of the Formula One Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, central Japan. Reuters
  • Spectators who evacuate from Typhoon Hagibis, gather at a makeshift accommodation for spectators of Formula One Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, central Japan. Reuters
    Spectators who evacuate from Typhoon Hagibis, gather at a makeshift accommodation for spectators of Formula One Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, central Japan. Reuters
  • Destroyed house and vehicle are seen following a strong wind in Ichihara, Chiba, near Tokyo. Tokyo and surrounding areas braced for a powerful typhoon forecast as the worst in six decades, with streets and trains stations unusually quiet Saturday as rain poured over the city. AP
    Destroyed house and vehicle are seen following a strong wind in Ichihara, Chiba, near Tokyo. Tokyo and surrounding areas braced for a powerful typhoon forecast as the worst in six decades, with streets and trains stations unusually quiet Saturday as rain poured over the city. AP
  • Destroyed houses, cars and power poles, which according to local media were believed to be caused by a tornado, are seen as Typhoon Hagibis approaches the Tokyo area in Ichihara, east of Tokyo, Japan. Reuters
    Destroyed houses, cars and power poles, which according to local media were believed to be caused by a tornado, are seen as Typhoon Hagibis approaches the Tokyo area in Ichihara, east of Tokyo, Japan. Reuters
  • Destroyed houses, cars and power poles, which according to local media were believed to be caused by a tornado, are seen as Typhoon Hagibis approaches the Tokyo area in Ichihara, east of Tokyo, Japan. Reuters
    Destroyed houses, cars and power poles, which according to local media were believed to be caused by a tornado, are seen as Typhoon Hagibis approaches the Tokyo area in Ichihara, east of Tokyo, Japan. Reuters
  • A woman walks in the rain at a pedestrian crossing near Osaka Station as Typhoon Hagibis approaches Osaka, Japan. Reuters
    A woman walks in the rain at a pedestrian crossing near Osaka Station as Typhoon Hagibis approaches Osaka, Japan. Reuters

Typhoon Hagibis kills 23 in Japan as troops deployed in rescue effort


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Japan sent tens of thousands of troops and rescue workers on Sunday to save stranded residents and fight floods caused by one of the worst typhoons to hit the country in recent history, which killed 23 people and briefly paralysed Tokyo.

There were also 16 people missing, public broadcaster NHK said, as Typhoon Hagibis left vast swaths of low-lying land in central and eastern Japan inundated and cut power to almost half a million homes.

Landing restrictions at Tokyo's Narita and Haneda airports were lifted but more than 800 flights were cancelled for the day, NHK said, as were some Shinkansen bullet train services to the worst-hit areas.

Authorities lifted rain warnings for the Kanto region around Tokyo, where stores reopened and many train lines resumed operations, but they warned there was still the risk of rivers in eastern Japan overflowing and inflicting fresh damage.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe convened an emergency meeting and sent the minister in charge of disaster management to the affected areas.

"I extend my condolences for all those who lost their lives and offer my sympathy to all those impacted by Typhoon No.19 (Hagibis)," Mr Abe said.

"With respect to blackouts, water outage and suspension of transportation services, we intend to exert all-out efforts for the earliest recovery ... we ask the public to remain vigilant of landslides and other hazards," he said.

Some 27,000 members of Japan's self-defence forces as well as firefighters, police and coast guard members were sent to rescue stranded people in central Japan's Nagano prefecture and elsewhere, the government said.

NHK said the full extent of the widespread damage was only beginning to emerge because many areas remained under water.

Some 425,000 homes were without power, the government said, reviving fears of a repeat of the weeks-long power outages suffered after another typhoon hit east of Tokyo last month.

In Fukushima, north of the capital, Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco) reported irregular readings from sensors monitoring water in its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The plant was crippled by a 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Tepco spokeswoman Emi Iwasa said the typhoon triggered 11 leak alerts at the plant. Of those, eight were confirmed as being triggered by rainwater and the rest were still being investigated. Iwasa said the operator had so far not confirmed if any radioactive water leaked into sea.

Hagibis, which means "speed" in the Philippine language Tagalog, made landfall on Japan's main island of Honshu on Saturday evening and headed out to sea early on Sunday, leaving behind cloudless skies and high temperatures across the country.

NHK showed fields and vast residential areas in parts of central and eastern Japan covered in brown water, with some of the worst damage caused by Chikuma river in Nagano prefecture.

Military helicopters airlifted stranded people from homes near the river, some cradling their children, after they were trapped by water reaching the roofs of their houses.

In Kawagoe, north of Tokyo, rescuers took residents from a flooded aged care facility by inflatable boats and carried them on their backs to safety. They also searched for survivors in homes destroyed in landslides near Tokyo's suburbs and in Fukushima prefecture, NHK showed.

Authorities at one point issued evacuation advisories and orders for more than 6 million people across Japan as the storm unleashed the heaviest rain and winds in years. Some 166 people were injured in the aftermath, NHK said.

The storm, which the government said could be the strongest to hit Tokyo since 1958, brought record-breaking rainfall in many areas, including the popular resort town of Hakone, which was hit with 939.5 mm of rain over 24 hours.

Just last month, another strong storm, Typhoon Faxai, destroyed or damaged 30,000 houses in Chiba, east of Tokyo, and caused extensive power outages.

The Rugby World Cup match between Namibia and Canada in Kamaishi on Sunday was cancelled, although the crucial Japan-Scotland match was set to go ahead. Two matches were cancelled on Saturday.

Formula One Grand Prix organisers had also cancelled all practice and qualifying sessions scheduled for Saturday but the race went ahead on Sunday.