Typhoon 18W (Jelawat), # 18
Published: September 27, 2012
11:15 a.m. Friday, Sept. 28, Japan time: After four days as a super-duper typhoon, Jelawat finally gave up the battle and was downgraded to regular ol’ typhoon status by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center in its latest advisory. Still, Jelawat apparently means business and will remain stronger than earlier forecast for both Okinawa and Kanto.
We’re looking at 126-mph sustained winds and 155-mph gusts around mid-afternoon Saturday for Okinawa. Whoo-wee, now that’s serious business. Worse than Sanba. Worse than Bolaven.
Though Jelawat should diminish in strength and pick up forward speed as it races toward landfall around 3 a.m. Monday over Hamamatsu in central Honshu, it will still be a powerful Category 1-equivalent typhoon, packing sustained 75-mph winds and 92-mph gusts. It should roar past Kanto Plain U.S. bases around mid-morning, still full of fury but perhaps not quite that bad.
In any event, to my Okinawa peepz: If you’ve not made final preparations for Jelawat’s visit, DO SO NOW! To my Kanto peepz: Time to begin preparing is now.
To review, Okinawa entered Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness 2 and Naval Air Facility Atsugi TCCOR 4 this morning. Yokosuka remains in TCCOR 4. Expect all Kanto bases to accelerate TCCORs as the storm approaches; keep an eyeball on your commanders’ access channels, Facebook pages and an ear to AFN Eagle 810-AM radio for the latest.
Typhoon timeline from Kadena Air Base’s 18th Wing Weather Flight:
-- Sustained 35-mph winds or greater, 6 p.m. Friday.
-- Sustained 40-mph winds or greater, 3 a.m. Saturday.
-- Sustained 58-mph winds or greater, 8 a.m. Saturday.
-- Maximum 126-mph sustained winds, 155-mph gusts, 3 p.m. Saturday.
-- Winds diminishing below 58 mph, 8 p.m. Saturday.
-- Winds diminishing below 40 mph, midnight Saturday.
-- Winds diminishing below 35 mph, 11 a.m. Sunday.
