Typhoon season 'right up Kadena's alley'

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Brooke P. Beers
  • 18th Wing/Public Affairs
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  Okinawa sits in the midst of "Typhoon Alley," which means Team Kadena will likely experience this weather phenomenon as typhoon season gets underway.

Typhoon season starts June 1 and lasts through the end of November, with the highest concentration of storms occurring in August and September. A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that brings powerful winds and has the potential to be very destructive.

The Kadena weather flight monitors tropical storms and typhoons and serves as a focal point for typhoon information on Okinawa. The 18th Wing commander uses the information provided by the Kadena weather flight to determine the island-wide Tropical Cyclone Conditions of Readiness. The Armed Forces Network displays the TCCOR level in the lower corner of all television channels and broadcasts precautions over the radio on 89.1 FM.

During a typhoon, members of the military community are encouraged to secure all loose outdoor objects, sandbag the base of external doors and stay inside. While riding out the storm Okinawa residents can visit the Kadena Air Base Facebook page for current information about the storm, its effects on the base and community concerns at www.facebook.com/KadenaAirBase.

The Kadena weather flight's home page and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center's home page also offer current weather information, including the island-wide TCCOR conditions.
For more information on safety precautions and TCCOR conditions click here, or read the base Emergency Actions Guide.

An average typhoon season will have as many as 26 tropical storms, however usually only three to four pass close enough to Okinawa to affect island residents. Last year the island endured through Muifa, a 60-hour typhoon that caused roughly $1 million in personal and government property damage.