Powerful Typhoon May Hit Japan’s Main Island Sat.

Tokyo, June 23 (Jiji Press)–Very powerful Typhoon Mekkhala slowly moved in a northerly direction over waters east of the Philippines on Tuesday and is expected to approach southern Japan as early as Thursday. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the seventh typhoon of this year is seen approaching the main island of the southernmost Japan prefecture of Okinawa and Amami Oshima island in the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima between Thursday and Friday. While likely weakening, the typhoon is expected to then approach western and eastern Japan on Saturday. The agency warned that the typhoon may cause violent winds, high waves and heavy rain. At 3 p.m. Tuesday, the typhoon was traveling northwest at a speed of 10 kilometers per hour over waters east of the Philippines, with a central atmospheric pressure of 925 hectopascals and a maximum sustained wind speed of 50 meters per second. Also on Tuesday, the agency announced that Typhoon Higos formed near the Mariana Islands at 9 a.m. The eighth typhoon of the year is expected to turn into an extratropical cyclone east of Japan on Saturday. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]