Typhoon smashes into Japan,four dead

The storm has already killed at least four people and more than a million were initially warned to leave their homes over fears that torrential rains could cause widespread flooding.

Hundreds of flights were cancelled,ferry and rail services were suspended and roads closed as the country prepared for the impact of the storm.

Roke comes just six months after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami laid waste to a vast area of Japan’s Pacific coast,sparking nuclear meltdowns at Fukushima.

It also comes less than a month after a vicious typhoon barrelled through Japan,killing 100 people in the deadliest storm the country has seen for more than three decades.

Four people have so far been found dead in central and western Japan,while two people are missing in the central prefecture of Gifu,including a boy who disappeared on his way home from primary school.

A tornado warning was temporarily raised across the Tokyo area,but expired a few hours after it was issued.

Many of the initial evacuation advisories were dropped by Wednesday lunchtime,but remained in force for around 330,000 people nationwide.

Heavy rains caused floods and road damage in dozens of locations in Nagoya and several other cities,the Aichi prefectural (state) government said.

Television footage showed people wading through water up to their knees in Nagoya,170 miles (270 kilometers) west of Tokyo. In parts of the city near swollen rivers,rescue workers helped residents evacuate in rubber boats.

Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. was shutting plants as a precaution.

Machinery maker Mitsubishi Heavy Industries told workers to stay home at its five plants and an office in the Nagoya area,company spokesman Hideo Ikuno said.

Nissan Motor Co. spokesman Chris Keeffe said workers at its Yokohama headquarters and nearby technical facilities were being told to go home early for safety reasons,and two plants were not operating.