Typhoon Mindulle (2016)
{{Short description|Pacific typhoon in 2016}}
{{Other hurricane uses|List of storms named Mindulle|the 2016 typhoon}}
{{Infobox weather event
| name = Typhoon Mindulle
| image = Mindulle 2016-08-22 0345Z.jpg
| caption = Typhoon Mindulle over the Greater Tokyo Area on August 22, with Tropical Storm Lionrock to its southwest
| formed = August 17, 2016
| dissipated = August 23, 2016
}}{{Infobox weather event/JMA
| winds = 65
| pressure = 975
}}{{Infobox weather event/JTWC
| winds = 65
| pressure = 974
| basin = Wpac
}}{{Infobox weather event/Effects
| fatalities = 3 total
| damages = 448000000
| areas = Mariana Islands, Japan
}}{{Infobox weather event/Footer
| season = 2016 Pacific typhoon season
}}
Typhoon Mindulle ({{IPA|ko|min.dɯl.le|pron}}) was a strong tropical cyclone which affected Japan in mid August 2016. The ninth named storm and second typhoon of the 2016 Pacific typhoon season, Mindulle was first noted as a low-pressure area northwest of Guam on August 17. Two days later, it was upgraded into a tropical storm, being named Mindulle. Gradually intensifying, Mindulle peaked as a Category 1-equivalent hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale on August 22 before making landfall in Chiba Prefecture later that day. Mindulle rapidly weakened, dissipating the next day.
Mindulle primarily affected Japan, forcing nearly 900,000 to evacuate. The third storm to strike Japan in a week, Mindulle exacerbated flooding caused Chanthu and Kompasu, causing 3 fatalities to occur. In Chiba, over 100,000 people were without power. In total, Mindulle caused around $448 million in damages.
Meteorological history
{{Storm path|Mindulle 2016 track.png}}
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) indicated that a tropical depression had formed northwest of Guam at noon on August 17.{{cite web|title=Marine Weather Warning for GMDSS Metarea XI 2016-08-17T12:00:00Z|url=http://www.wis-jma.go.jp/cms/warning/2016/08/17/marine-weather-warning-for-gmdss-metarea-xi-2016-08-17t120000z/|website=WIS Portal – GISC Tokyo|publisher=Japan Meteorological Agency|accessdate=August 22, 2016|date=August 17, 2016}} A few hours later, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) quickly issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert and also upgraded the system to a tropical depression with the designation 10W on the same day, based on increased symmetric convection associated with a defined but partially exposed low-level circulation center (LLCC) that was embedded within the southwest monsoon surge.{{cite web|title=Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wt/wtpn21.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100547/https://www.webcitation.org/6jsiSdon8?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WTPN21-PGTW_201608171600.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 17, 2016 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Depression 10W (Ten) Warning Nr 01 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100507/https://www.webcitation.org/6jrS6GNZA?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608172100.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 17, 2016 |url-status=dead }} One day later, the JTWC upgraded 10W to a tropical storm via the Dvorak technique, with the winds proved by a recent scatterometer pass.{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 10W (Ten) Warning Nr 05 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100753/https://www.webcitation.org/6jt0TtPQe?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608182100.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 18, 2016 |url-status=dead }} The JMA upgraded the system to a tropical storm and named it Mindulle early on August 19, when central convection had become more organized.{{cite web|title=RSMC Tropical Cyclone Advisory 190600 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wt/wtpq22.rjtd..txt |publisher=Japan Meteorological Agency |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100630/https://www.webcitation.org/6jsznjh8k?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WTPQ22-RJTD_201608190600.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 19, 2016 |url-status=dead }} However, an upper-level low to the north and the predecessor of Tropical Storm Kompasu to the northeast were stifling the development of any poleward outflow.{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 10W (Mindulle) Warning Nr 07 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100708/https://www.webcitation.org/6jt0SiC3W?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608190900.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 19, 2016 |url-status=dead }}
Moving on the eastern edge of a relatively high-latitude monsoon gyre and being steered by the southern extension of the subtropical ridge anchored east of Japan, the intensification of Mindulle was limited on August 20, owing to modest dry air entrainment resulting in flaring convection near and surrounding the LLCC.{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 10W (Mindulle) Warning Nr 11 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100828/https://www.webcitation.org/6juZ6pvY6?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608200900.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 20, 2016 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 10W (Mindulle) Warning Nr 13 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523101110/https://www.webcitation.org/6jwCAIQ7Z?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608202100.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 20, 2016 |url-status=dead }} Although the JMA upgraded Mindulle to a severe tropical storm when it was approximately {{Convert|380|km|abbr=on}} northwest of Chichi-jima at around 15:00 JST (06:00 UTC) on August 21, outflow from Tropical Storm Lionrock to the west was inhibiting further development and causing a partially exposed LLCC with deep convection displaced southward, as the distance between their centers was only about {{Convert|600|km|abbr=on}} at that time.{{cite web|title=RSMC Tropical Cyclone Advisory 210600 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wt/wtpq22.rjtd..txt |publisher=Japan Meteorological Agency |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100948/https://www.webcitation.org/6jwBeBv5w?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WTPQ22-RJTD_201608210600.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 21, 2016 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 10W (Mindulle) Warning Nr 15 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523101110/https://www.webcitation.org/6jwCAIQ7Z?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608202100.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 21, 2016 |url-status=dead }} With warm sea surface temperatures of between {{Convert|30|and|31|C|F|lk=in}}, good equatorward and poleward outflow channels, as well as low vertical wind shear, the JMA upgraded Mindulle to a typhoon at around 03:00 JST on August 22 (18:00 UTC on August 21), when the center was located only about {{Convert|40|km|abbr=on}} east of Hachijō-jima.{{cite web|title=Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 10W (Mindulle) Warning Nr 17 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wd/wdpn32.pgtw..txt |publisher=Joint Typhoon Warning Center |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523101029/https://www.webcitation.org/6jwC8mU1I?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WDPN32-PGTW_201608212100.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 21, 2016 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|title=RSMC Tropical Cyclone Advisory 211800 |url=http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/data/raw/wt/wtpq22.rjtd..txt |publisher=Japan Meteorological Agency |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240523100908/https://www.webcitation.org/6jwBcfIZo?url=http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/advisories/WTPQ22-RJTD_201608211800.htm |archivedate=May 23, 2024 |date=August 21, 2016 |url-status=dead }} At around 12:30 JST (03:30 UTC), Mindulle made landfall over the area near Tateyama, Chiba.{{cite web|title=平成２８年 台風第９号に関する情報 第３７号 |url=http://www.jma.go.jp/jp/typh/D20160822034309477.html |publisher=Japan Meteorological Agency |accessdate=August 22, 2016 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822035530/http://www.jma.go.jp/jp/typh/D20160822034309477.html |archivedate=August 22, 2016 |language=Japanese |date=August 22, 2016 |url-status=dead }}
Preparations and impact
File:Sailors stand at parade rest aboard the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville (CG 62) to depart Fleet Activities Yokosuka as a precaution for tropical storm Mindulle. Chancellorsvi (29097958602).jpg was departing from Yokosuka on August 21 in advanced of Typhoon Mindulle]]
While Mindulle was in its developmental stages, the Guam National Weather Service office issued a tropical storm watch for Tinian and Saipan. On the islands, the storm produced gusty winds and showers.
Across the Kantō Plain, about 850,000 people were ordered to evacuate. In Kanagawa and Tokyo prefectures, officials issued landslide watches. On Hokkaido, more than 2,700 people evacuated due to Mindulle. Ahead of the storm, Narita International Airport – Tokyo's main airport – was closed, causing 425 flights to be canceled, affecting tens of thousands of travelers.{{cite news|author=Steff Gaulter|newspaper=Gulf Times|title=Multiple storms batter Japan|date=August 28, 2016|accessdate=August 28, 2016|url=http://www.gulf-times.com/story/509801/Multiple-storms-batter-Japan}} Hundreds of Japan Railway trains were also canceled. American military bases in Japan were set at Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness (TCCOR) 1, and non-essential people were directed to stay in their lodgings after most services were shut down.{{cite web|author=Dave Ornauer|title=Tropical Depression 10W (Mindulle), #22 (Final)|date=August 2016|series=Storm Tracker|accessdate=August 28, 2016|url=http://www.stripes.com/blogs/pacific-storm-tracker/pacific-storm-tracker-1.257110/tropical-depression-10w-mindulle-22-final-1.424446}}
The third storm to strike Japan within a week, Mindulle dropped heavy rainfall on Honshū, where the soil was saturated due to rainfall dropped by the earlier tropical storms Chanthu and Kompasu. Ōme, Tokyo recorded nearly {{convert|268|mm|in|abbr=on}} of rainfall. The offshore islands of Hachijō-jima and Izu Ōshima both reported {{convert|86|mm|in|abbr=on}} of precipitation in just one hour, which is about half the average August rainfall for both locations. Shizuoka recorded nearly {{convert|14|in|mm|abbr=on|order=flip}} of rainfall. In the capital city Tokyo, Mindulle dropped {{convert|105|mm|in|abbr=on}} of rainfall, which is 66% of the average August rainfall. Narita Airport recorded winds of 126 km/h (78 mph), which forced air traffic controllers to evacuate the control tower. This was the first time the tower was evacuated due to a typhoon, and only the second time in its history after the 2011 Japan earthquake.{{cite news|author=Dave Ornauer|publisher=Stars and Stripes|title=Storm locks down US military bases in Japan|accessdate=August 28, 2016|url=http://www.stripes.com/news/storm-locks-down-us-military-bases-in-japan-1.424937}} The island of Miyake-jima recorded winds of {{convert|93|mph|km/h|abbr=on|order=flip}}, and Yokosuka Naval Base recorded winds of {{convert|58|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, which restricted outdoor activity.
Floods from Mindulle's heavy rainfall submerged a tunnel along the Chūō Expressway in Tokyo. Portions of Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Yokota Air Base, and Camp Zama were flooded, with runways submerged. At Yokota Air Base, the floods cut off power to five housing towers, forcing the occupants to evacuate.{{cite news|author=Aaron Kidd|publisher=Stars and Stripes|date=August 23, 2016|accessdate=August 28, 2016|title=Floods, power outage force some Yokota residents to evacuate|url=http://japan.stripes.com/news/floods-power-outage-force-some-yokota-residents-evacuate|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921174044/http://japan.stripes.com/news/floods-power-outage-force-some-yokota-residents-evacuate|archive-date=September 21, 2016|url-status=dead}} Floodwaters covered roads and damaged homes in Hokkaido, and a man drowned in Kitami,{{cite news|publisher=CNN|title=Tropical storm Mindulle threatens Japan|date=August 21, 2016|accessdate=August 28, 2016|url=http://newsok.com/tropical-storm-mindulle-threatens-japan/article/feed/1062108|author=Ben Westcott|author2=Rachel Aissen}} days after floods from Kompasu also killed a man on Hokkaido. A woman in Sagamihara outside Tokyo also drowned during the storm. Nationwide, Mindulle's effects injured 61 people. Across southeastern Honshu, 15 rivers flooded, and a train line was washed out in western Tokyo, forcing a train of commuters to evacuate. High winds knocked a tree onto a central Tokyo train station, which suspended service on the Tokyo Loop Line.{{cite news|newspaper=Saudi Gazette|title=Typhoon dumps heavy rain on northern Japan|accessdate=August 28, 2016|url=http://saudigazette.com.sa/world/asia/typhoon-dumps-heavy-rain-northern-japan/}} Fallen power lines left over 100,000 people without power, mostly in Chiba Prefecture.
Total financial loss in Japan, along with Tropical Storm Kompasu, were counted to be ¥45 billion (US$448 million).{{cite news|url=http://kyouiku.bousai-hokkaido.jp/wordpress/ndl/130922/|title=平成28年台風11号、台風9号の連続上陸による大雨災害|language=Japanese|publisher=Hokkaido Disaster Prevention Information|accessdate=April 22, 2017}}
See also
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [http://www.jma.go.jp/en/typh/1609.html Tropical Cyclone Information] of Typhoon Mindulle (1609) from the Japan Meteorological Agency
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20161125233934/https://metoc.ndbc.noaa.gov/JTWC Joint Typhoon Warning Center]
- [http://agora.ex.nii.ac.jp/digital-typhoon/summary/wnp/s/201609.html.en JMA General Information] of Typhoon Mindulle (1609) from Digital Typhoon
{{2016 Pacific typhoon season buttons}}
{{Portalbar|Tropical cyclones|Japan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mindulle}}