Typhoon Tokage was located 390 kilometers (241 miles) southeast of Miyako island in the Pacific region and packing wind speeds of 144 kilometersmiles) per hour, the agency said.

It was moving northwest at a speed of 20 kilometers (12 miles) an hour and was forecast to hit southwestern Japanese islands including Okinawa as early as Tuesday, the agency said.

According to the agency's computer simulation, the typhoon is expected to move northeast through the Japanese archipelago on Wednesday and Thursday, with strong winds, heavy rain and high waves.

Ma-on, the most powerful typhoon to hit eastern Japan in a decade, slammed into the Tokyo metropolitan area on October 9, leaving six people dead and three others missing and paralyzing the capital's transport systems.

Just a week before Ma-on, Typhoon Meari wreaked havoc in the Japanese islands, leaving 22 dead, six missing and presumed dead, and 89 injured in floods, landslides and other storm-triggered accidents.

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