TOKYO (AP) — A powerful typhoon was bearing down on Japan's tsunami-ravaged northeastern coast Wednesday, approaching a nuclear power plant crippled in that disaster and prompting calls for the evacuation of more than a million people.
Police and local media reported that five people were dead or missing after being swept away by rivers swollen with rain as Typhoon Roke approached.
The storm, packing sustained winds of up to 100 mph (162 kph), made landfall in the afternoon near the central Japanese city of Hamamatsu, about 125 miles (200 kilometers) west of Tokyo. The storm was expected to cut a path northeast through the capital and into the northeastern region of Tohoku, which was devastated by the March 11 tsunami and earthquake.
Also in the path of the storm is the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, which started spewing radiation after it was sent into meltdown by the tsunami.
Takeo Iwamoto, spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power Co., the utility that operates the plant, said the cooling system for the reactors, crucial to keeping them under control, will not be endangered by the typhoon.
He said some construction work around the plant was canceled and utmost efforts were under way to prevent leaks of radioactive water and other material from the typhoon.
Japanese media reports said more than a million people have been ordered or advised to evacuate across the country as their homes may be flooded or buried in mudslides triggered by the typhoon. The numbers varied, as there is no nationwide tally, and the situation has been flexible. The Mainichi nationwide newspaper reported 1.4 million people were issued evacuation warnings, while the Yomiuri newspaper put the number at 1.2 million.
The city of Nagoya temporarily called off an evacuation warning for 880,000 people when swelling in a major river subsided, but officials said the warning could be reissued if conditions warranted.
Heavy rains caused floods and road damage in dozens of locations in Nagoya and several other cities, the Aichi prefectural (state) government said.
Television footage showed people wading through water up to their knees in Nagoya, 170 miles (270 kilometers) west of Tokyo. In parts of the city near swollen rivers, rescue workers helped residents evacuate in rubber boats.
Police in nearby Gifu prefecture said a 9-year-old boy and an 84-year-old man were missing after apparently falling into swollen rivers.
The storm was bringing rain and wind to the Tokyo area and commuters were being warned to go home early before the heart of the system hits the capital later Wednesday.
More than 200 domestic flights were canceled and some bullet train services were suspended, according to the Kyodo News service.
Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's No. 1 automaker, which is headquartered in Toyota city in Aichi, was shutting plants as a precaution.
Machinery maker Mitsubishi Heavy Industries told workers to stay home at its five plants and an office in the Nagoya area, company spokesman Hideo Ikuno said.
Nissan Motor Co. spokesman Chris Keeffe said workers at its Yokohama headquarters and nearby technical facilities were being told to go home early for safety reasons, and two plants were not operating.
A typhoon that slammed Japan earlier this month left about 90 people dead or missing.
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