A typhoon killed 17 people in Japan on Wednesday, most on an offshore island, but largely spared the capital and caused no new disaster as it brushed by the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power station, the plant’s operator said, Reuters reports.
More than 50 people were missing after the “once in a decade” Typhoon Wipha roared up Japan’s east coast. About 20,000 people were told to leave their homes because of the danger of flooding and hundreds of flights were canceled.
Sixteen people were killed on IzuOshimaIsland, about 120 km (75 miles) south of Tokyo, as rivers burst their banks. The storm set off mudslides along a 2 km (1.2 mile) stretch of mountains.
The storm brought hurricane-force winds and drenching rain to the Tokyo metropolitan area of 30 million people at the peak of the morning rush hour.
