Typhoon Kong Rey path tracker: Japan faces SECOND typhoon in 48 HOURS – MILLIONS evacuated

Typhoon Kong-rey is the next storm to take shape in the Pacific Ocean, where Japan is just recovering from Typhoon Trami.

Having already torn through Okinawa, typhoon Trami has left two people dead and injured up to 120 more.

The storms arrive at the height of Pacific hurricane/typhoon season, when high-powered weather systems are frequently inbound for territories in the Pacific Ocean.

Among these recent systems is typhoon Mangkhut, which killed over 100 people and trapped more under dangerous landslides.

Typhoon Trami is still a strong storm, bringing 85mph winds to bear on Fuji, tracking in a northeastern direction.

The local environment means Trami is expected to continue weakening in the future, before dissipating into a tropical depression.

Evacuations for the storm extended out into Japan, with 19 prefectures (administrative jurisdictions) in the country and 3.7 million people affected.

Capital city Tokyo’s Narita and Haneda airports saw flights cancelled, with 1,000 journeys in and out of the country scrapped in the wake of strong winds.

Announced less than 48 hours following Trami’s landfall, typhoon Kong-rey is expected to head for Japan after developing into a super typhoon.

Typhoon Kong-rey is at the moment located 903 miles southeast off the coast of Okinawa, Japan.

The system is expected to continue on towards a northeastern direction, where conditions are expected to push it towards winds of 149mph.

These favourable conditions are set to arise over the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) and Japan is expected to receive the storm by late this week.

AccuWeather Meteorologist Rob Richards said: ”Typhoon Kong-rey will travel across the Philippine Sea over the coming days and gradually strengthen.

“After threatening the Ryukyu Islands, scenarios for Kong-rey’s expected track around the start of next weekend range from the typhoon targeting Taiwan and/or eastern China or curving northeastward to mainland Japan or the Korean Peninsula.”

Entering into the Philippine Sea, low wind interference (shear) and temperate seas will allow the storm to continue strengthening.

As it works over the region however, the shear is expected to pick up, leading Kong-rey into a slow weakening.

The southern regions of the Ryukyu Islands are most in danger from the storm, which despite being weakened, could inflict strong winds.

Unfavourable conditions mean a future Kong-rey will make landfall with winds of 80mph, a category 1 on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale.

Korea, Taiwan and the eastern reaches of China have been warned to keep track of the system, as Kong-rey is in its early stages and subject to change.

When typhoon Mangkhut hit Hong Kong, it did so in a weakened state away from super typhoon status, but was still strong enough to blow in windows of tower blocks.