Typhoon Ma-on Weakens After Making Landfall in Japan

NU Online News Service, July 20, 10:31 a.m. EDT

Typhoon Ma-on is weakening as it heads east into the Pacific after striking Tokushima Prefecture, Japan yesterday, causing less than $250 million in insured damages.

According to Guy Carpenter’s CAT-i report Ma-on struck the coast of Japan yesterday with winds topping 100 mph, bringing heavy rains to the region. The Japan Times says the storm struck 23 miles east of the southernmost tip of Kii Peninsula at 1 p.m. local time.

Risk modeler EQECAT estimates that insured losses from the storm to be less than $250 million.

Air and rail services were disrupted, with airlines cancelling hundreds of flights. One person was reported missing. Guy Carpenter says 55 people were injured and thousands lost power.

"The slow forward speed of the storm has created concerns of mudslides and flooding caused by prolonged heavy precipitation," says Peter Sousounis, prinicipal scientist at AIR Worldwide in a statement. "The JMA [Japan Meteorolgical Agency] has issued alerts for high waves and heavy rain for coastal portions of Kinki, Tokai, and Kanto regions."

AIR says it expects structural damage to be minimal from the typhoon's winds and it "does not expect significant industry insured losses from flooding for this event."

This story was updated at 3:11 p.m. with information from AIR