Rain lashes Tokyo as typhoon approaches

TOKYO -- Heavy rain and strong winds lashed Tokyo today as a typhoon neared the capital after killing one person, injuring at least 35 and cutting power to tens of thousands of homes.

Typhoon Fitow made landfall in Odawara in Kanagawa prefecture just south of Tokyo early today, public broadcaster NHK said. It was packing winds of up to 78 mph on Thursday evening, according to the Meteorological Agency.

In Tokyo, train service was disrupted and pedestrians struggled to hold onto umbrellas.

The typhoon, moving at only 12 mph, was forecast to hit Tokyo and its vicinity later today and bring up to 14 inches of rain. Warnings were issued for possible landslides and flooding from Fitow, named for a flower in Micronesia.

The Category 1 typhoon, the weakest on a scale of 5, dumped heavy rain on parts of Japan's main island of Honshu since Wednesday.

Meteorologists warned that Fitow was particularly dangerous because it was moving so slowly, giving it time to pick up moisture from the ocean, and because its path was expected to bring it directly over heavily populated areas, including Tokyo, where about 25 million people live.

A 76-year-old man was killed in Karuizawa, a resort town in central Japan, after suffering a head injury by a fallen tree, Kyodo News agency said.

Thirty-five people have been injured in central Japan, NHK reported. In Shizuoka, about 94 miles west of Tokyo, a 93-year-old woman broke her leg after falling, and two men sustained slight injuries after the windshield of their car was broken, NHK said.

About 57,000 homes were without power in 10 prefectures, including Tokyo, and authorities issued evacuation advisories for 950 homes in Shizuoka and two other prefectures, according to the broadcaster.

Fifty-seven houses were flooded in central Japan, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said.

Hundreds of elementary and junior high schools in central Japan called off Friday classes, NHK said.

Fitow also grounded more than 200 domestic flights linking the capital and regional cities, affecting more than 41,000 people, according to Kyodo.

Last month, Typhoon Usagi injured more than 16 people in southwestern Japan.