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Typhoon Jebi: Japan hit by strongest storm in 25 years, leaves trail of destruction

Click to play video: 'Typhoon Jebi’s strong winds tear roof off building in Osaka, Japan'
Typhoon Jebi’s strong winds tear roof off building in Osaka, Japan
WATCH ABOVE: Strong winds from Typhoon Jebi ripped the roof off a building in Osaka, Japan, on September 4, sending debris flying into electric wires and causing a large spark. – Sep 5, 2018

A powerful typhoon blew through western Japan on Tuesday, causing heavy rain to flood the region’s main offshore international airport and high winds to blow a tanker into a connecting bridge, disrupting land and air travel.

Jebi was the strongest typhoon to make landfall in Japan since 1993, according to Japan’s Kyodo News service.

The storm was heading north across a swath of Japan’s main island of Honshu toward the Sea of Japan. It was off the northern coast of Fukui on Tuesday evening with sustained winds of 126 kilometres per hour and gusts up to 180 kph , the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

WATCH: Aerial footage shows devastation wrough by Typhoon Jebi in Japan

Click to play video: 'Aerial footage shows devastation wrought by Typhoon Jebi in Japan'
Aerial footage shows devastation wrought by Typhoon Jebi in Japan

In the hard-hit city of Osaka, high seas poured into Kansai International Airport, flooding one of its two runways and cargo storage and other facilities, forcing the airport to shut down, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

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A building damaged by Typhoon Jebi is seen in Osaka, western Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo September 4, 2018. Kyodo/via REUTERS
WATCH: Debris from the typhoon hit the glass ceiling of the central train station in Kyoto, causing glass to fall into the atrium below, narrowly missing people. 
Click to play video: 'Commuters narrowly avoid being struck by falling debris in Kyoto Station'
Commuters narrowly avoid being struck by falling debris in Kyoto Station

More than 700 flights were cancelled, according to Japanese media tallies. High-speed bullet train service was suspended from Tokyo west to Hiroshima.

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A 2,591-ton tanker that was mooring slammed into the side of a bridge connecting the airport to the mainland, damaging part of the bridge and the vessel. The tanker’s 11 crew members were not injured and remained on board, according to Japan’s coast guard.

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Elsewhere in Osaka, the Universal Studios Japan theme park and U.S. Consulate were both closed. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe cancelled a scheduled trip to Kyushu, Japan’s southernmost main island, to oversee the government’s response to the typhoon, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

The typhoon first made landfall on Japan’s southwestern island of Shikoku and then again near Kobe on Honshu. Television footage showed fallen tree branches and high seas overflowing onto low-lying areas.

Tokyo escaped relatively unscathed, with some intermittent squalls.

WATCH: 100 cars on fire in typhoon-ravaged western Japan

Click to play video: '100 cars on fire  in typhoon-ravaged western Japan'
100 cars on fire in typhoon-ravaged western Japan
Photo shows motor vehicles blown over by winds from powerful Typhoon Jebi in Osaka, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2018. Kyodo News via Getty Image
High waves triggered by Typhoon Jebi are seen at a fishing port in Aki, Kochi Prefecture, western Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo September 4, 2018. Kyodo/via REUTERS

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