NU Online News Service, Sept. 8, 1:21 p.m.EST

Typhoon Talas could cost insurers as much as $600 million asofficials search for victims of the weekend storm that slammed intowestern Japan and claimed more than 50 lives.

The catastrophe-modeling firm AIR Worldwide put out a reportyesterday saying that insured losses from Typhoon Talas could costbetween $150 million and $600 million.

The storm came ashore as a tropical storm on Saturday morning,striking Kochi Prefecture on Japan's Shikoku Island, says PeterSousounis, principal scientist at AIR Worldwide.

“Overnight on Saturday, the slow-moving storm crossed thesouthern island of Shikoku and the central part of the main islandof Honshu, passing near the cities of Kobe, Osaka, and Kyoto, allthe while delivering heavy rain,” says Sousounis. “Record rainfallfell on central and western Japan and wide sections of the countryexperienced damaging winds.”

The storm moved offshore into the Sea of Japan by Monday, henotes.

Due to Talas's unexpected slow forward motion across Japan,precipitation and the resultant flooding were more significant thanhad been forecast last week, AIR says.

The storm was “unusually large” AIR went on to say, withtropical storm force winds extending outwards up to 373 milesdumping 4-8 inches of rain on much of Japan. Up to 63 inches fellin the mountains of the prefecture of Nara.

According to press reports the storm has claimed more than 50 lives and as many as 50others remain missing from heavy flooding.

AIR says Talas is the season's 12th named storm, seventh severetropical storm and fifth typhoon of the 2011 Pacific typhoonseason.