Typhoon Wukong, which means Monkey King in Chinese, was moving slowly toward the southern main island of Kyushu, packing winds of up to 83 kilometers (51 miles) per hour, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Koji Ooishi, 45, drowned when he was surfing off a beach at Kochi on the island of Shikoku, some 600 kilometers (380 miles) southwest of Tokyo, police said.

"He was seen surfing alone off a beach not quite famous as a surfing spot. The waves rose as high as six meters (20 feet)," said a police spokesman.

Ooishi, who had no job, travelled there from his home in the port city of Kobe.

Separately 20 people, mostly anglers, were temporarily stranded on sandbanks or swept away when rainwater swelled in the Sakawa river 60 kilometers (40 miles) west of Tokyo, police said.

One angler in his 70s was later found dead under a bridge at the mouth of the river while another was still missing, police said. The 18 others were moved to safety.

Typhoon Wukong was 110 kilometers (70 miles) off Kyushu at 5 pm (0800 GMT) and was moving at 10 kilometers per hour toward the island, the meteorological agency said.

"The typhoon is moving slowly so it may cause heavy rain as it is likely to stay in the same area," said an agency official. "But the typhoon may change its course and pass over the water."

The Pacific coasts of Kyushu and Shikoku can expect 300 to 350 millimeters (12 to 14 inches) of rain by midnight, he said.

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