Typhoon Rusa, the 15th typhoon of the season, is approaching the Okinawa and Amami regions, the Japan Meteorological Agency said Wednesday.
The Daitojima Islands east of the main island of Okinawa are likely to be hit with winds of 90 kph or more some time Wednesday night, while Okinawa and Amami are expected to experience winds of 90 kph or greater around noon Thursday. Rusa is expected to move west into the East China Sea.
Rusa is packing winds of 144 kph near its center and was located in the Pacific some 400 km east of Mimani-Daitojima Island, the agency said. It is moving west-northwest at 25 kph and has an atmospheric pressure of 955 hectopascals near its center.
The Okinawa region is likely to get 200-250 millimeters of rain by Thursday afternoon, while the southern part of Kyushu is expected to be hit with downpours of 250-300 mm.