At least 14 people were killed as a powerful typhoon sparked mudslides which destroyed homes on a Japanese island before sweeping up the Pacific coast, grounding hundreds of flights and disrupting Tokyo’s transport network during rush hour.

Typhoon Wipha, which fizzled into a tropical storm while sweeping across eastern China, killed seven people and left three missing when it lashed the region with winds, torrential rains and landslides, reports said today.

Typhoon Wipha slammed into the Chinese coast this morning as authorities evacuated two million people following forecasts it would be the most powerful storm to hit the area in a decade.

Shanghai closed schools and 1.6 million people were evacuated from coastal areas today as Typhoon Wipha, forecast to be the most powerful storm to hit the region, thrashed toward the Chinese mainland.