Typhoon Dujuan bore down on the Tokyo metropolitan area on Monday, 21 September 2026, bringing winds of around 144 kilometres per hour as it moved to approximately 130 kilometres south of Katsuura City in Chiba Prefecture. More than 1.6 million residents in and around Tokyo were urged to evacuate by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, though the advisories were not mandatory. Flood and landslide warnings were placed across Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa and Shizuoka prefectures, with the northern parts of the Izu island chain receiving a Level 5 landslide warning and other areas in the Kanto region receiving Level 4 warnings for heavy rain, landslides and flooding.
The Japan Meteorological Agency warned that total rainfall through Tuesday could exceed the average monthly rainfall for September, raising the prospect of record-breaking precipitation. Authorities also cautioned that linear rain bands could form over Kanto and central Japan, sharply raising the risk of flash floods and other rain-related disasters. The JMA had earlier issued a warning of an 'imminent threat to life', though the BBC reported that this warning was subsequently downgraded in most areas as the storm's track evolved [Source: BBC News]. One person in Miyazaki Prefecture was confirmed dead as a result of the typhoon, and another sustained minor injuries, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency [Source: The Japan Times]. More than 9,000 households near Tokyo were without power.
The storm caused significant operational disruption across the capital and surrounding regions. Japan Airlines (9201.T) cancelled 135 flights, while All Nippon Airways (9202.T) scrapped 140, for a combined total of 275 cancellations. Railway operators in Tokyo and neighbouring regions suspended services on some lines. The disruption extended to major public events: Typhoon Dujuan forced the early closure of the Tokyo Game Show, one of the world's largest video-game trade fairs, on Monday, its final day. A major outdoor music festival and a baseball match both scheduled in Chiba were also cancelled.
Dujuan, the season's 25th named typhoon, briefly reached typhoon status on Friday before weakening to a tropical storm on Sunday morning, with forecasters expecting it to strengthen back to typhoon intensity by Tuesday morning. Japan regularly experiences powerful typhoons in late summer and early autumn, and other storms had already disrupted events at the Asian Games being hosted in the country this year. Linear rain bands have become a growing concern in Japan in recent years, given their capacity to deliver extraordinary amounts of rain over a narrow area within a matter of hours.
Sources: Bloomberg, Sky News, BBC News, Bangkok Post, France 24, Japan Today, The Japan Times, Saudi Gazette