Japan's southwestern islands on high alert as Typhoon Bavi approaches

ISHIGAKI, Japan — A large and powerful typhoon approached a remote chain of islands in southwestern Japan on Friday, prompting authorities to warn residents of violent winds, torrential rain, landslides, and flooding in what could become the region's most destructive storm in years.

Early Friday, Typhoon Bavi was nearing Japan's Sakishima Islands, a remote island chain near Taiwan, with maximum sustained winds of 162 kilometers per hour (100 mph). Residents rushed to secure homes and businesses as the storm drew closer.

Airlines canceled dozens of flights across the region, including scheduled services for Saturday.

On Ishigaki Island, a popular tourist destination in the Sakishima chain, residents stocked up on emergency supplies, leaving supermarket shelves short of instant noodles. Several public beaches, coastal parks, and the local ferry terminal were also closed as a precaution.

Business owner Hiroshi Nomura said he was reinforcing his bicycle rental shop with windproof nets in preparation for the storm.

"I heard that this one will be pretty big," Nomura said. "I'm a little concerned about whether our typhoon preparations are enough."

Windproof nets and taped windows were visible at businesses throughout Ishigaki as residents braced for the typhoon.

In neighboring Taiwan, financial markets were closed for the day, while offices and businesses across much of the northern and eastern parts of the island also suspended operations. The Taipei city government established stations where residents could collect sandbags to help protect their properties.

Although Typhoon Bavi is not expected to make landfall in Taiwan, forecasters said it is expected to bring heavy rainfall beginning late Friday before moving toward China's coast and gradually weakening.

Taiwan's airlines also canceled all Saturday departures from Taoyuan International Airport, the island's main international gateway near Taipei. -Reporting by Joseph Campbell and Kim Kyung-Hoon in Ishigaki; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Writing by Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Tom Hogue/Reuters