Japan: Toll in typhoon Hagibis reaches 26

The passage of Hagibis completely paralyzed transport in the region. Although services were being restored gradually, more than 800 flights and rail services remain cancelled on Sunday. Authorities requested people to remain on alert to the risk of flooding and landslides even after the typhoon had passed.

Tokyo: Japan has launched a huge operation to provide humanitarian assistance and assess the damage brought by typhoon Hagibis after its hurricane-force winds and torrential rain killed at least 26 people and sparked major flooding.

At least 18 people are still missing in central, eastern and northern areas of the main Honshu island while another 175 were injured.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Sunday said that more than 110,000 personnel from the police, fire department, coast guard, and Self-Defense Forces are taking part in the search and rescue operations.

Many people are suffering at emergency shelters asking officials to send relief supplies to disaster-hit areas even if they haven't made any specific requests, Abe told.

Moreover, airlines in Japan cancelled more than 800 domestic flights on Sunday.

Railway operations in Tokyo and surrounding areas have been shut and will only resume after the Japanese authorities will check the safety of the local train services.

The country's road network was also affected and the flooding of some of them left some areas isolated.

Around 50 landslides of varying size had been registered across the country and reportedly buried many houses in rural areas with casualties reported but not yet specified.

The passage of Hagibis, the 19th typhoon of the season in the Pacific and one of the most powerful to hit Japan in decades, completely paralyzed transport in the region.