Typhoon Dolphin is bearing down on Japan's Okinawa Island, where landfall is expected on Friday morning for the territory of 1.4 million residents, who have been urged to secure homes and prepare for possible evacuations. The storm battered the Ogasawara Islands on Tuesday as a very strong typhoon packing winds of 185 kilometres per hour.
Taiwan's Central Weather Administration said a sea warning could be issued as early as Friday afternoon if Dolphin maintains its westward course. The typhoon's center was located roughly 2,720 kilometres east of Taipei on Monday, moving northwest at about 25 kph with maximum sustained winds of 43 metres per second.
Northeasterly winds are expected to bring isolated showers to northeastern Taiwan through midweek, while heavy rain and long-period swells threaten the island's northern and eastern coasts. Forecasters warn of torrential downpours in northern mountainous areas when the storm's impact peaks on Saturday and Sunday.