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Japan issues extreme weather warning for Kyushu area as El Nino set to wreak havoc

Xinhua, June 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA) on Thursday issued extreme weather warnings to areas in South and North Kyushu, including Miyazaki And Kagoshima Prefectures, as well as to the north in Nagasaki and Kumamoto prefectures.

The JMA has warned of heavy rain in the area and thunderstorms, potentially leading to the loosening of ground and landslides, as well as extensive flooding in low-lying areas.

A sediment disaster alert was also issued by the JMA Thursday, specifically for regions in Nagasaki and Kumamoto prefectures.

A day earlier Japan's weather bureau said that an El Nino weather pattern had been identified, which may be linked to the current heavy rainfall in the south and southwest of Japan, adding that the weather pattern is intensifying and could last through the current rainy season into summer and even last until winter.

"Currently, the conditions of the atmosphere and the ocean suggest a characteristic feature of El Nino more clearly than a month ago," Japan's weather bureau said on Wednesday.

In May the JMA first identified the El Nino weather pattern, saying it first emerged in spring and is likely to continue at least into autumn if not winter.

"The sea temperature was 1.2 degree Celsius higher than a base temperature in May, up from 0.8 degrees the previous month, meaning that El Nino is growing," Ichiro Ishikawa, forecaster at Japan's weather bureau was quoted as saying Wednesday.

"In case of the 2009 El Nino, sea temperature hit 1.4 degrees above a base temperature at its peak in December 2009. So the current one is expected to grow to a similar degree or larger than the 2009 El Nino," he added.

Around the same time of year in 2012, local governments issued evacuation orders for residents in parts of Nagasaki and Kawa- minami in Miyazaki Prefecture due to the danger of landslides and flooding after intense downpours and storms. Officials also reported 91 landslides in the Nagasaki area and 67 in Kumamoto Prefecture. Endi