Typhoon Lionrock (2016)

Date: August 18–31, 2016

Place: Japan, North Korea, South Korea, China

Result: Typhoon Lionrock was a powerful tropical cyclone that killed roughly 550 people and caused more than $325 million (USD) in economic losses.

Overview

Typhoons occur only in the northern Pacific Ocean, as similar storms in other parts of the world are hurricanes or tropical cyclones. Typhoons are common occurrences in countries of the Pacific Ocean. However, the part of Japan that was most affected by Typhoon Lionrock is not an area that normally experiences these storms. In the Pacific, the typhoon season lasts throughout the year, but most typhoons form between May and October.

Typhoon Lionrock started as a storm in the northwest Pacific Ocean. NASA satellites first began tracking it on August 18, 2016. The storm grew from a tropical depression (which is a rotating organized storm with sustained wind speeds of no more than 38 miles per hour) to a tropical storm (which is the same type of storm with sustained winds of 39 miles per hour or more). The storm traveled northward for days, gaining in intensity. As tropical storms travel over open water, they generally become larger and stronger. They pick up moisture from the ocean, and they become especially strong when they pass over warmer water.

Scientists classified the storm a typhoon on August 23 as it neared the islands of Japan. A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that forms in the northern Pacific Ocean and reaches wind speeds of at least 74 miles per hour. The storm turned southward and weakened for a time, but then it returned on a northward course and intensified.

Typhoon Lionrock first made landfall in Japan. It landed on August 30, 2016, near the city of Ofunato in northeastern Japan on the main island of Honshu. The storm traveled northward to Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost main island. The track of the storm was unusual. Most typhoons approach Japan from the south or southwest, rather than from the southeast. Few strike the east coast. The areas affected in Japan had not been hit by a typhoon in more than a decade. The storm produced flooding and mudslides, which caused a significant humanitarian crisis. Most of the damage in Japan was located in the northern part of the country, which is largely agricultural. At least twenty-two people died in Japan because of the storm. After it crossed the Sea of Japan, it encountered a low-pressure area over China. This caused heavy rain that led to flooding in Russia, China, and especially North Korea.

International organizations mobilized to help those affected. International assistance was especially important in North Korea, where many citizens are poor and malnutrition is common. Because North Korea’s government is very strict and secretive, few international organizations are allowed to work inside the country. The United Nations World Food Program assisted North Koreans after the storm by giving food to nearly 140,000 people. North Koreans also received aid from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, which provided supplies for building shelters and personal hygiene items. More than one hundred people died in North Korea because of the storm and the resulting flooding.

One reason that Lionrock greatly affected Japan and other regions was that it was the second tropical system to affect the area in less than two weeks. Nine days earlier a typhoon called Mindulle had moved through and dumped large amounts of rain on Japan and surrounding areas. The succession of rain events caused streams and rivers to overflow.

Although tropical cyclones are dangerous weather events in many parts of the world, prediction and warning systems have greatly improved outcomes of these storms. Meteorologists and other scientists track the storms using satellite images and other data. They can make predictions about the paths the storms will take and their intensity. This is important because scientists can then warn the people living in the storm’s path so they can evacuate, reinforce buildings, and otherwise prepare. Although forecasting and warning systems save lives, typhoons and other tropical cyclones are still dangerous weather events that kill hundreds of people around the world each year.

Impact

Typhoon Lionrock affected a number of different countries and millions of people. The storm killed approximately 550 people and cost roughly $325 million (in US dollars) in damage. The typhoon first made landfall in Japan where it hit the country’s main island, Honshu. The storm brought intense rainfall that caused flooding. The first deaths associated with the storm were reported in Japan when flooding killed nine people in a nursing home facility in that country. Other deaths were soon reported in Japan, mostly due to flooding. The typhoon also hit parts of Japan that were hit by a devastating 2011 tsunami.

Typhoon Lionrock was also a disaster in North Korea, a nation in which hunger and poverty were problems before the storm hit. The heavy rains from the typhoon caused flooding in Musan and Yonsa counties and Hoeryong City. The typhoon and the resulting flooding destroyed tens of thousands of homes and other buildings, leaving thousands of North Koreans homeless, and caused at least 133 deaths there. Although the North Korean government, headed by Kim Jong-un, usually avoided admitting problems that happened in the country, North Korean officials did admit that flooding had taken a toll on some regions. International aid workers noted that thousands of homes and other structures would need to be rebuilt before the winter to shelter people from freezing temperatures. The North Korean government even took the uncommon step of asking for international assistance to help the victims of the storm.

Typhoon Lionrock caused more fatalities than any other typhoon during 2016 (though Hurricane Matthew in the Caribbean and the United States did kill more people). The storm was one of ten typhoons to affect Japan and other Pacific nations in 2016. It had the third-largest death toll of any natural disaster during 2016.

Bibliography

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“What Is the Difference between a Hurricane and a Typhoon?” NOAA, 19 Mar. 2019, oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/cyclone.html. Accessed 27 Apr. 2019.