Typhoon Faxai lashes Tokyo and surrounding areas, wreaks havoc on transportation

Typhoon Faxai made landfall near Tokyo early Monday morning causing major disruption to transportation networks with train services being suspended and flights being halted as the capital and surrounded areas were lashed by torrential rain and battered by gusty winds, Trend reports citing Xinhua.

According to Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA), Typhoon Faxai made landfall near Chiba City, east of Tokyo, at around 5:00 a.m. on Monday (2000 GMT Sunday), prompting East Japan Railway Co. to suspend all lines in the greater Tokyo area.

East Japan Railway Co. said it hopes to resume its services by 10:00 a.m. (0100 GMT) local time, though hundreds of thousands of Monday morning commuters have already been affected.

Central Japan Railway Co. resumed its bullet train services at around 7:40 a.m. (2240 GMT Sunday) after debris was removed from tracks. Preempting the severity of the storm, the operator had reduced its services between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka a day earlier.

Around 920,000 households were without power as of 6:00 a.m. local time (2100 GMT Sunday), according to Tokyo Electric Power Company.

Around 138 flights to and from Tokyo area airports on Monday were cancelled, including 49 Japan Airlines flights and 41 operated by All Nippon Airways, the carriers said. The other cancellations were made by smaller, budget carriers.

Local authorities have said that a number of people have been injured as a result of the powerful typhoon, with more than a dozen people hurt in Tateyama, Chiba Prefecture, and surrounding areas and 10 people injured in Chiba City. Two people were also hurt in neighboring Kanagawa Prefecture.