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Powerful typhoon turns downtown Osaka into a ghost town【Photos】

Casey Baseel Sep 5, 2018
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As Typhoon Jebi approaches the downtown area, everyone else wants to get out of it.

Osaka is one of the biggest cities in Japan, and its people are known for their unabashed passion for commerce, comedy, and cuisine. Put all those factors together, and you can expect the city center to bustling at just about any time of day or night, as people make their way to and from their offices or favorite places to eat and drink, laughing and chatting all the way.

▼ A typical day in Osaka’s Umeda neighborhood

But while downtown Osaka is normally full of life, these images from Tuesday morning and afternoon, primarily taken in the city’s Umeda district, show an eerily empty ghost town.

帰宅しようと思ったら傘はさせずずぶ濡れ☔🍃ゴーストタウンのJR大阪を通りすぎ、御堂筋線乗ろうと思ったら強風で止まってる💧
ひとまず谷町線乗って、中央線がまだ動いていることを祈る🛐 pic.twitter.com/3gFixpsUJN

— faith (@OceanBlue327) September 4, 2018

16:20現在の梅田

ゴーストタウンみたいや、、、 pic.twitter.com/P3unZnnuaa

— サッサン 333 (@sassansan3339) September 4, 2018

With the powerful Typhoon Jebi advancing on Osaka, the city cleared out early, as the approach of a powerful storm is one of the few things that can motivate Japanese bosses to let employees go home early. A number of shopping complexes and department stores shut down for the day, closing their shutters and turning their pedestrian-accessible passageways into lonely steel-sided corridors.

という訳で、やって来ました梅田！
日中なのに殆どシャッターというゴーストタウン梅田ツアー(ФωФ)

滞在期間は京都線の高槻止まり(最終…でも時間は未定)に乗るまでのチキンレースだ( ﾟДﾟ)ゞ pic.twitter.com/xIEV7JJlYg

— HIRo (@Fate_hrtk97) September 4, 2018

今日昼過ぎの梅田地下街
まさにゴーストタウンだ#台風21号 #梅田 #大阪駅 pic.twitter.com/ATNzma58VL

— CheshireCat (@londoneco) September 4, 2018

全館休館中でゴーストタウンのグランフロント大阪 pic.twitter.com/0MBaoUj6pK

— Raynyan (@RaynyanFunifuni) September 4, 2018

Roads and train stations too were also vacuums of humanity, with the majority of commuters heading home early to take cover against the approaching typhoon.

街はゴーストタウンのよう。ＳＦ映画みたい。藤原竜也が絶望した顔で、うなだれそう。
梅田よりも難波の方が人がいる感じがする。嵐の前の静けさとは、このことを言うのですね。
万車券の嵐が欲しいなあ。 pic.twitter.com/bGWoqIBoVP

— 桂輪太郎 (@keirintarou714) September 4, 2018

思ったほどゴーストタウンではない大阪梅田界隈。
10時15分現在。 pic.twitter.com/2t7Ehq7NF7

— ☆☆☆ハトマーク (@hatomark3505f) September 4, 2018

大阪梅田はゴーストタウン pic.twitter.com/DiwuuFoi7O

— naoko☺︎ (@8163naoko) September 4, 2018

Looking at the photos, it seems like the only people choosing to stick around the area were news crews, appreciating what might be their last moments of dryness before having to venture outside for on-location reports.

大阪駅に人が全然いない。マスコミは大量におる。 pic.twitter.com/9BswgbNZ5Z

— りょうすけ (@ryousuk) September 4, 2018

The storm is expected to make its way out of Osaka sometime during the night, with the forecast calling for partly cloudy conditions on Wednesday and clear skies on Thursday. After that, though, showers are coming again, so hopefully Osaka will at least get to enjoy a few beautiful sunsets during its respite from the rain.

Source: Hachima Kiko
Featured image: Twitter/@OceanBlue327
Insert image: Wikipedia/Mc681