Usagi Batters Japan Island; Loss Estimate At $500M

Typhoon Usagi battered Japan's southern island of Kyushu yesterday, reaching Category 2 status and causing $500 million in insured losses, a modeling firm said.

Boston-based modeling agency AIR Worldwide said Typhoon Usagi, the fifth named storm of the Western Pacific cyclone season, battered the island, damaging roofs and causing several injuries.

According to press reports, the storm injured 18 people and halted bullet train service from the main island for hours.

AIR said the storm canceled 140 flights and cut power to 28,000 homes.

Peter Sousounis, senior research scientist at AIR, said in a statement that up to 14 inches of rain are expected in some areas of southeastern Japan.

The typhoon strengthened to a Category 4 storm (winds between 131 and 155 mph on the Saffir/Simpson scale) before reaching landfall as a Category 2 storm (winds between 96 and 110 mph).

Mr. Sousounis said Usagi hit Kyushu with sustained winds of 104 mph and gusts exceeding 124 mph. The storm reached wind speed of almost 138 mph before reaching landfall.

Based on meteorological information and Japan typhoon modeling, AIR said it does not expect the storm to have caused more than $500 million in insured losses.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, Usagi is off the western coast of the island with sustained winds of 25 mph. It is expected to move over the northern portion of Japan, the island of Hokkaido, over the next 24 hours.

This is the second major storm to reach Japan in less than a month, Mr. Sousounis noted.

Typhoon Man-yi hit Japan in July, causing three deaths. AIR did not issue loss estimates for that storm.

In the Atlantic, the National Hurricane Center said that while no cyclone activity is expected over the next 48 hours, it is tracking weather systems in the Western Caribbean and over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico.