Typhoon_June_(1954)
Typhoon June (1954)
Pacific typhoon in 1954
Typhoon June was a large, strong and devastating typhoon that severely impacted the west and central areas of mainland Japan, causing scores of deaths and heavy devastation. A large storm, it was the tenth storm to be tracked by the Fleet Weather Center (FWC) during the 1954 Pacific typhoon season. The storm was already a tropical storm when it was first noticed by both the FWC and JMA by September 4. Only six hours later, the storm intensified into a typhoon and underwent rapid intensification into a modern-day Category 4 super typhoon just east of northern Luzon in the Philippines with maximum sustained winds of 130 knots (240 km/h; 150 mph) calculated in 1-minute sustained winds along with JMA's estimates of its minimum pressure of 910 millibars (27 inHg) on September 7. However, it started to weaken below super typhoon status, and its intensity began to fluctuate while moving northwestwards and north-northwestwards. As it turned northwards by September 12, June regained its intensity as a Category 4 system before making landfall over Yamaguchi Prefecture's Shimonoseki City. There, it weakened and crossed into the Sea of Japan as a tropical storm. Data from the now-Joint Typhoon Warning Center indicated that as the storm made landfall somewhere Primorsky Krai, it retained its tropical storm status. Upon moving inland, it degenerated into an extratropical low before being last monitored by FWC during September 15. However, the JMA did the same on the next day at 06:00 UTC.
Storm warnings were placed for some areas in Japan and the east coast of the Korean Peninsula as June slowly approached these areas.[1] In the former, military bases in Okinawa were sheltered while evacuations of people were initiated over the affected areas, particularly over Miyazaki, Miyakonojo and Nobeoka, where 120,000 estimated people were sheltered into safety. Houses were also shuttered. June's first impacts in the country is at Okinawa, where gale-force winds impacted the island. As the typhoon further approached and made landfall over Japan, public infrastructures including bridges and highways sustained damages. Households were also inundated with floods and some were wrecked. Shipping and communication lines were also affected by the storm. 107 were confirmed to have been killed by the typhoon in the country, while 39 were missing. Over 180,000 were flooded and 39,000 are destroyed completely. Along with Typhoon Lorna that struck Tokyo-Yokohama area, June were responsible for over $300 million (1954 USD) worth of damages. Floods were also experienced across the Korean Peninsula due to the typhoon. The troops of the ROK and US were forced to seek higher ground as their military bases were flooded. Dams were also reported to have been nearing their water levels. The typhoon is also responsible for the highest wind speed being recorded at that time before it was surpassed by 2010's Typhoon Prapiroon. Damages and deaths there, if any are unknown.