Thursday, August 29

Japan is being pummeled by Typhoon Shanshan, and rain is the primary problem along with strong winds of over 85 mph.

Shanshan began as a tropical depression northwest of the Northern Mariana Islands with winds of 30 mph, moving quite slowly at first. Then, it blasted across the Pacific at around 15 mph, reaching over 21 mph in the middle of its journey, and then slowed down again before arriving in Japan-- it even crawled at a mere 1 mph as it strengthened to become the equivalent of a Category 3 hurricane, with sustained winds of 125 mph.

Before making landfall at around 8 am local time (7 pm EST), Shanshan's winds weakened to 85 mph, but the pouring rain continued. The storm made landfall on Japan's southernmost island of Kyushu in the Kagoshima Prefecture, just northwest of the city of Kagoshima. Precipitation totals of over two feet have already fallen-- the excessive rain is leading to flash flooding, power outages, landslides, and road collapses. By Friday, widespread totals are expected to reach over 3.5 feet, while they could be even higher in isolated areas. Over 810,000 people were told to evacuate across southern Japan, and 56,000 of them were issued mandatory evacuations as the typhoon closed in.

The Japan Meteorological Agency has issued various watches and warnings across the country to help citizens know what to expect. Almost all of southern Japan is under some sort of flood advisory or warning, as well as Heavy Rainfall Warnings. Gale Advisories are in place across the western and southern portion of the country while High Wave Warnings have been issued for all coastal regions in the path of the storm, along with Storm Surge Warnings in some areas. Thunderstorm Advisories are the most widespread, stretching from Kagoshima across the entire island of Honshu-- almost the entire country is under Thunderstorm Advisories, with the exception of the northernmost islands like Hokkaido. Most importantly, the agency issued its rare emergency warning for Kagoshima Prefecture, which is reserved for the most violent storms that could cause major damage. The only other time that this warning has been issued for Japan's main islands was ahead of Typhoon Nanmadol in 2022, which impacted the same area as Shanshan.

Due to the fact that the typhoon is moving relatively slowly, more rain is falling over Japan. Rain bands from the typhoon extend hundreds of miles from the center of the system, leading to more severe effects across the entire country. A landslide in the city of Gamagori, located in the central prefecture of Aichi, buried a house with five family members inside-- three were killed and two others were rescued but injured. Toyota is halting production at all 14 of its Japanese factories in order to keep their workers safe, and Nissan, Honda, Mazda, Daihatsu, and Yamaha have also temporarily shut down. To add onto that, bullet trains, postal services, and supermarkets are all closing down to shelter from the storm, numerous flights into and out of Japan have been canceled, and over 255,000 people have lost power.

From here, Shanshan will pass through Oita Prefecture before briefly moving over the ocean and making a second landfall onto the island of Shikoku, weakening as it travels. By the time the typhoon arrives onto Honshu Island, it will be a tropical storm with winds of 40 mph, but the rain will still make a major impact-- the storm will move extremely slowly on its journey eastward. As it arrives in Honshu, it will deliver heavy rains and strong winds to multiple major cities, such as Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, and Wakayama. As it continues across land, Shanshan will weaken to a tropical depression before fizzling out somewhere around the Tokyo region. However, there is a long way to go because of its sluggish pace-- there is still an entire week before the storm arrives in Tokyo.

Major League Baseball player Danny Jansen made history recently after he became the first-ever baseball player to play for two teams in the same game. Here's how he achieved the bizarre feat.

Back on June 26, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Boston Red Sox began a matchup at Boston's Fenway Park, and Jansen was playing for the Blue Jays. However, heavy rain soon arrived, causing the game to be rained out.

Then, one month later, Jansen was traded to the Red Sox, so when the game resumed on Monday from the top of the second inning, he was playing on the opposite team against his old teammates. Unfortunately for him, the Red Sox lost the game 4-1 after allowing the Blue Jays a run in the seventh and another three in the eighth before managing to score a home run in the bottom of the eighth.

This makes him the first-ever MLB player to play for two teams in the same game, and the chances that it will occur again are very slim.

Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): The original name of the rock band Led Zeppelin was actually The New Yardbirds.

Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): If people are not laughing at your goals, your goals are too small. (Azim Premji)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Lollygag (verb)- To lollygag is to spend time doing things that are not useful or serious, or in other words, to fool around and waste time.

In a Sentence: Stop lollygagging and get to work!