Sawt Falasteen - Storm Jangmi dumps torrential rain on Tokyo

Many trains were largely deserted in and around Tokyo, as commuters in the usually bustling megacity stayed home to escape Storm Jangmi's deluge.

Some railway services were delayed or cancelled in the country whose public transport system prides itself on on-the-dot punctuality.

The storm also forced school closures.

As Jangmi rolled in from southern Japan, authorities urged around 370,000 people from Tokyo to western Shikoku island to evacuate.

"Please continue to pay close attention to evacuation information from your local authorities, and if you feel even the slightest sense of danger, do not hesitate to take early action to protect your life," top government spokesman Minoru Kihara told a news conference Wednesday.

The storm has flooded streets, toppled trees, triggered landslides and closed some expressways, Kihara said, adding "approximately 60,000" power outages have been confirmed.

"Even in areas where the rain has subsided, the ground may have been loosened by previous rainfall and the risk of landslides remains," he cautioned.

Japan's two biggest airlines All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines cancelled a combined 616 flights -- including 92 international flights -- scheduled for Wednesday.

At Tokyo's Haneda airport, large screens showed most international flights bound for cities like Sydney, Singapore, London and Bangkok had been either cancelled or delayed, an AFP reporter saw.

Torrential rain filled rivers in western and eastern Japan including in the Tokyo area, although the Japan Meteorological Agency lifted many of the flood warnings in place earlier in the day.

Around 0645 GMT, the storm appeared to be moving away from Japan, on an eastern trajectory towards the Pacific Ocean.

On Tuesday, the storm injured 15 people in the south of the country.

A.Suleiman--SF-PST