Typhoon Haishen in Japan

Typhoon Haishen has intensified, strengthening into a super typhoon and is expected to make landfall in southwestern Japan in the coming hours.

Haishen has estimated wind speeds of 145-160mph, and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center predicts the storm will hit Japan as a category 3 storm before moving northwards. The storm is expected to bring heavy rainfall, sustained high winds and huge waves.

Water has been discharged at nine dams in Wakayama, Nagasaki and Kagoshima prefectures to prevent flooding. Japan's Meteorological Agency officials have urged residents of Kyushu and Okinawa to brace for the storm and prepare for possible evacuations.