Japan issues emergency warning as powerful Typhoon Shanshan nears

TOKYO -Southwestern Japan braced on Wednesday for what officials say could be one of the strongest storms to ever hit the region, as some residents in the path of Typhoon Shanshan were ordered to evacuate and major firms like Toyota closed factories.

Airlines and rail operators cancelled some services for the coming days as the typhoon, categorised as "very strong", barrelled towards the main southwestern island of Kyushu with gusts of up to 70 metres per second .

The meteorological agency issued an emergency warning saying the typhoon could bring flooding, landslides and wind strong enough to knock down some houses.