A tropical storm could make landfall on Japan’s main island on Tuesday, the weather agency said, as Olympic organizers said they had no plans to reschedule events beyond those already moved.
But because Tropical Storm Nepartak is expected to move west and approach east and northeastern Japan, some Olympic events may be affected by the weather, with the Meteorological Agency warning of heavy rain, winds and high waves.
The eighth storm of the year was moving northwest at about 30 kph in the Pacific as of 3 p.m. Monday. It had an atmospheric pressure of 992 hectopascals at its center and was packing wind gusts of up to 108 kph.
Rainfall of up to 150 millimeters is projected for the Tohoku region and 100 mm for the Kanto-Koshin region, including Tokyo, in the 24 hours through noon Tuesday.
The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games said that it currently plans to hold Tuesday’s events as scheduled, except for rowing and archery, which have already been rescheduled to avoid possible disruption.
“We’d like to secure the safety of all people related to the event. We will notify as soon as possible if any changes are made,” said Masanori Takaya, an official of the organizing committee.
The committee will quickly release information, especially if the weather affects events that allow spectators, including a soccer match in Miyagi Prefecture, Takaya added.
The weather agency has warned of landslides and flooding resulting from heavy rain, while attention should also be paid to severe wind gusts, tornadoes as well as lightning strikes.
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