it's 10:00 p.m. in tokyo, welcome to "newsline," i'm michio kijima. the very strong typhoon roke is churning closer toward japan's main island of honshu. tonight people in central and western japan are on high alert. heavy rain is already falling in the region, and there are growing fears of widespread flooding and landslides. evacuation warnings have been issued, affecting more than one million people. local government officials had advised people to head to evacuation centers as the water

levels were rising on the tenpaku and shonai rivers. >> translator: the rain was pouring. i had to evacuate with my child before it got i'm woied about water level on the river. >> in nearby gifu prefecture, authorities are telling people to leave their homes. rescuers are searching for two people including a schoolboy. in a prefecture next to osaka, officials want nearly 40,000 people to evacuate. people in other areas of miyazaki and other southern prefectures in japan have been ordered to evacuate because of possible landslides. some residents had to be rescued by boat before their houses were inundated by the rising floods. >> translator: i feel relief. the rain is easing off now. i hope it stops soon. i lope it stops soon. >> one reason why typhoon roke is causing such concern is

because western japan is still recovering from a previous storm that hit the region earlier this month. experts with japan's meteorological agency are tracking typhoon roke closely and monitoring the heavy rain that's already falling in the western and central parts of the country and telling residents who could be affected to be on maximum alert. meteorological agencies say typhoon roke is looking similar to a storm that caused heavy flooding in japan about three years ago. >> translator: an extensive disaster could be triggered. people should exercise extreme caution. >> the meteorological agency says residents facing evacuation orders should head to shelters as soon as possible warning it will be diffict for people to leave their homes at night when heavy rain is falling. meanwhile, a huge lake created by a landslide caused by a tropical storm earlier this month is in danger of overflowing. the land ministry is warning people not to go near or downstream of the river.

parse of remembers in nara prefecture in western japan were blocked by landslides after the 12th tropical storm this storm dumped a record high amount of rain here earlier this month. huge water pools created by landslides and the land ministry has been monitoring such dammed up rivers around the clock. the ministry has installed surveillance cameras around the lake. the dam sites are deep in mountainous terrain and inaccessible to vehicles. as of early tuesday, three in danger of overflowing. if the pools burst, there could be massive floods and tremendous erosion. the one in tanabe city is especially dangerous. the lake is estimated to hold 1.1 million ton of water when full. according to the ministry, worst case suggestion, an overflow to run about 4 kilometers. in tanabe city, the total rainfall has reached nearly 100 millimeters since last evening.

68 people living in the dangous areas of tanabe have been ordered to evacuate. the rain is expected to continue through central portions of country. we go to the weather desk for details. >> hi there. thank you very much. the latest news is that we have a very strong typhoon on our hands. it has intensified to that level. and this is it right here. it looks like a very well-organized storm. as it continues to head towards central honshu, we are going be seeing very strong winds generated from it and continuing heavy rain obviously. we're expecting landfall to occur probably just past the kii peninsula in the tokai region. the winds are now at 180 kilometers per hour, with wind gusts over 250 kilometers per hour. there's certain enough to be generating very high waves at the coast, maybe even up to about nine meters, that in itself is going to be very dangerous. now as the storm makes its way

up through towards hokkaido, we are going to be seeing it maintain its strength. even after making landfall. so those very strong winds, damaging winds, moving along with the storm. and of course, bringing all of that rain. now let's take a look at what's happened in the past 24 hours. this is some record-breaking rail. here's some totals they're western and central japan, about 400 millimeters of rain has fallen in some places. we need to add to what is expected in the next 24 hours. anywhere you're seeing in the red could be up to about half a meter of rainfall. up in towards eastern japan, 400 millimeters of rain. that includes the kanto region and tokyo. and then beyond that, up towards the north. 250 mms of rain in the next 24 hours, that is going to be added to of course as the storm heads further up to the north. we have a critical situation here. and we're going to bring you more weather news later in the show. a tsunami expert says japanese authorities need to think bigger and use their

imaginations to safeguard nuclear power facilities from natural disasters. he spoke in japan's nuclear conference in kyoto kyushu. >> translator: many claim the scale of the tsunami was beyond their imagination. they cannot prepare with an attitude like that. >> he's a world-renowned expert on tsunami and the risks they pose. he published a paper about 23 years ago, suggesting that tsunami could disrupt the electrical system of a nuclear plant. he recommended that authorities takereventive measures, even if this sort of disaster hadn't happened in the past. still it took years for the government's guidelines on the quake-resistant design of nuclear facilities to make reference to tsunami. officials revised the guidelines in 2006, but they did not give concrete instructions on how to estimate the height of possible tsunami.

professor shuoto claimed he urged nuclear companies to estimate accurately the disasters. >> translator: imagination is needed to draw up measures to prevent tsunami. people must research previous tsunami. and imagine what could happen if similar waves hit the coastline today. >> the professor also said tsunami damage depends on geographical features and infrastructure. he argues that the impact of the monster waves is hard to predict. >> translator: it's already accepted that tsunami will inundate cities. nuclear scientists failed to draw up basic countermeasures. >> translator: we know very little about natural phenomenon, such as tsunami it seems that it is difficult to predict the

affect of tsunami on man-made structures. the japanese government and tokyo electric power company have updated their plan to put fukushima daiichi into cold shutdown. they believe the process will be completed before the end of the year. the previous estimate was january 2012. cold shutdown means the temperature inside the plant's reactors will stay below 100 degrees celsius. >> the government and tepco revealed the revised plan monday. next week, workers at fukushima daiichi will install new devices that reactors one, two, and three, the mechanisms will use filters to remove contaminated gas. tepco is also working on improving the cooling systems for the three reactors. on top of that, it plans to complete the construction of a giant poliese polyester shield.

it released about 200 million becquerels per hour during the first half of september. they said that's about one-fourth millions of what the plant emitted after its meltdown in march. the government's evacuation advisories in are 20 to 30 kilometers frothfukusha iichi nuclear power plant may be lifted by the end of th month. residents in theon that's currently advised to prepare to evacuate in case of emergency. many residents have already left the area and schools there are closed. chief cabinet secretary fujimura announced that the five municipalities have submitted their recovery plans and he thinks the conditions to lift the advisories have been met. >> translator: the government will hear views from the nuclear safety commission and then major a formal decision to lift the advisories by the end of this month. south korea's chief delegate to the six-party talks on north

korea's nuclear program has arrived in beijing for talks with hits north kean counterpart. south korea's wi sung-lac will meet his north korean counter part on wednesday. >> at their first meeting on the indonesian indonesiani island of bali he demanded that the north korean program be halted immediately. north korea refused saying the program is for generating nuclear power for peaceful purposes. south korea and the united states maintain that the six-party talks, which have been suspended for more than two and a half years. cannot resume unless the north stops its enrichment activities. the focus will be whether south

korea can get any flexibility on the issue from the north. land prices in commercial areas in japan's northeast have fallen following the march disaster. a survey conducted by the land ministry shows that those prices dropped at almost all surveyed locations in the quake-hit region. the survey also found that the commercial land prices across japan were 4% down on average from last year. the fourth straight year they have dropped. experts say the downtrend is unlikely to end any time soon. >> translator: the earthquake added pressure on land prices, which had already been declining, due to the financial crisis after lehman's collapse in 2008. i think land prices will continue to fall gradually. china has expressed strong concerns about the impact of the deepening debt crisis in europe,

but has fallen short of announcing any rescue measures. >> translator: if the eu's economic growth slows, it will mean fewer imports from china. >> the spokesperson for the chinese commerce ministry made the remarks at a news conference on tuesday. expectations have been growing that china may come out with steps to help debt-ridden european nations, including purchases of their sovereign bonds. but he confined himself to saying that if the credit crisis worsens, there could be, to have a degree of impact on trade between china and europe. he noted china has been monitoring the situation in europe since the outbreak of the crisis. adding that he had already offered support to some european countries. the japanese government has left its basic economic assessment unchanged from last month. it says the economy is recovering, but concerns remain about the negative impact of a strong yen. in its monthly economic report

for september released on tuesday, the government said corporate production was recovering from the march 11th earthquake and tsunami. the disaster seriously disrupted parts distribution systems. but the government downgraded its assessment of corporate profits, saying they are on the decline due to the disaster and historic surge of the japanese currency. on personal consumption, the report says there are signs of improvement, but the employment situation remains severe. that was the same expression used to describe employment in august. on the prospect of the future economy, the government expresses concern due to the increasing risk of a global slowdown, the negative impact of a strong yen and lower stock prices and cites credit worries in europe and uncertainties over the u.s. economic outlook. >> translator: the economy is expected to continue to improve. but we have to be careful about

downside risks to economies of other countries. as well as exchange rates and stock prices. >> japan's daihatsu has started selling a fuel-efficient mini car. the new model runs 30 kilometers on a liter of gasoline. the fuel efficiency has been achieved by lowering the ceiling of the car by ten centimeters to reduce air resistance. to reduce drag, a top system has been installed. the engine is cut automatically when the car stops. daihotsu has brought down the price by using fewer parts. the lowest-priced model costs a bit over $10,000. with other automakers planning to step up mini car sales in the coming months, competition in this category is expected to intensify. >> translator: i believe our new

mini car is highly competitive, we are committed to making this type of car in the future. soaring yen has brought hardship to japanese exporters, small businesses that make and sell traditional crafts are harding to look harder for ways to survive. some businesses have come up with sharp ideas to cope. nhk world's issue khikawa has m. i'm visiting seki city gifu prefecture. they have been making knives and cutlery for 70 years. seki's cutlery industry is export-driven. like that of germany. 40% of the city's blades are sold to the u.s. and europe. >> but unprecedented rise of the

yen hit seki hard last month. >> translator: the industry will end if the exchange rate reaches 75 yen. >> translator: small businesses like us cannot move production overseas. >> reporter: orders are still coming in, but the high exchange rate is sapping profits. some firms in seki have even cut production. to attract overseas customers, seki has produced a style of blade known as damascus, for five years. nrasamme seki decide dodd cotengen dasc i aatrn o reveal

dedicated pattern after polishing. prices range from about $230, to $560, depending on the size. sale this maker's latest eye-catching design is his dragon scale brand. he is also planning a mount fuji motif at the request of foreign customers. >> translator: i think branding is the most important thing in any craft business. customers will buy brand products, even when their currency is weak. they know the brand guarantees quality. >> reporter: anoth company trying t overcome the strong yen is targeting the aging population worldwide with a

novelty product. these nail clippers have a magnifying glass to help cut your nails safely. the company sells the clippers at duty-freeps japan. sales are growing. the clippers are inexpensive, about $12. tourists from china, taiwan and south korea are learning about them by word of mouth. >> translator: these clippers are really good for the elderly and they should last long. >> even japanese end, very high, the price, i think the price is very good, good price to buy this one. >> translator: seki's cutlery products have the qualities of beauty, sharpness and innovative ideas. all of these add value to the product. price is not the issue. we can be competitors in other

countries. if our product satisfy customers. >> businesses in seki city are finding their own ways through the currency crisis. they are making cutting-edge products that match customers' preferences and trends. here are the latest market figures.

time to check on some of the stories we've gathered from broadcasters around asia. we begin tonight with this item sent by trt, turkey. an explosion in ankara on tuesday has killed at least two people and left 27 others injured. the blast occurred in one of the most crowded districts of the capital. police are unable to say whether it was a terrorist attack or an explosion in a car parked by a propane gas. the area has been cordoned off and rescue crews have rushed to the site and ambulances and fire engines. the thai government on deuce kicked off a drive to fight transnational crimes along its border with laos. police squads will step up patrolling along the thai-laos border to preventmugglingf drugs, timber a gs. recent, casef dog-smuggling are on the increase as the animal is considered a delicacy in laos and other countries.

the operation is geared to help thai officials learn how to coordinate their activities with other members of the asean economic community, which comes into existence in 2015. malaysia's first lady calls for economic empowerment of women. she made the comment at the world economic forum in kuala lumpur on tuesday. countries including argentina, belgium, china and the u.s. are participating. she said women's talents in various fields should be nurt e erod should not work and against them. and a nd to set up funds to help entrepreneurs set up small businesses. time for more weather, let's head back into eastern asia. we have been talking all day about the approaching typhoon roke. let's talk aboutewhere else

that has been dealing with extensive flooding. and it's going to be back in here in southwestern china, and extensive flooding problem we've been looking at for the last week or so. and unfortunately, the rain continues to come down here. so elsewhere in the country, high and dry. but where we really need it to be drying out, unfortunately, the rain will continue certainly for the next 24 hours. probably into the next few days. mongolia also looking dry as well as the korean peninsula. it's going to be a little bit cooler in central portions of china. i'll show you the temperatures in just a moment, we see more scattereowan dersrmcrths lal ghre en 1gqg, 'soibe l ffwen in by jing, 19 in ulan b. and we're hanging on in the heat in the 30s in hong kong and

bangkok. in north america, much of the u.s. is going to be looking we still have a few problem areas. one along the eastern seaboard, you can see the long line of cloud. this is a front that will be ving out. it's disappeared by the time we get to our forward projection. we see a lot of rain down here in the southeast, due to a very humid flow coming up from the south. then we have another low along the canada-u.s. border heading in towards the great lakes. th one is going to be associated with ver strong wind and cold air funneling in behind it. so the winds actually gusting to around 97 kilometers per hour. in behind it spills the cold air. that's going to drop temperatures by about ten degrees in some areas. so if wre talking about minneapoli you're about 21. i think on your weesday, it will drop down toorry that's your tuesday, it will drop down to about 12 on your wednesday. and then up in theacific northwest. we have yet another pretty of the same in fact. it going to beeaaind stngwi, gti upo aut 100 kimerser houcoming toou i . cic nohwest,0egesn

ncve 2n seattl coer founinpe a . weeeeingemrares recovengncagain,ohe utback io t 3 i homa city and houston hanging onto the heat there at 34. 32 for you in miami. all right. if we take a look into europe, across the north, it oing to be pretty messy. we have a system pushing through the british isles and up in towards scandinavia at the moment. this one looks like it's going to be keeping things fairly messy for the next couple of days for sure. and then down in towards the balkans and southern italy, we have another small, very potent storm. this one could be causing some problems in serbia in terms of the rain. also delivering to about ten, even to about 40 centimeters of fresh snow for the upper elevations of the mountains i sta. seerwe're looking dry and calm across western continental europe and into central locations as well. temperaturewise, we're keeping the heat in athens, 29 degrees for you, 30 in lisbon, a little

cooler up towards stockholm of 15 and moscow also at 15 for your wednesday. here's your extended forecast.

as typhoon roke turns towards japan, tonight people are western japan are on high alert. evacuation warnings issued affecting more than 1.2 million people. local government officials have advised nearly 812,000 people in nagoya to head to evacuation centers, as the water levels there are rising on the shonai rivers. >> translator: the rain was pouring, i had to evacuate with my child before it got dark. i'm worried about water level of

the river. >> in nearby gifu prefecture, authorities are telling more than 90,000 residents to leave their homes. rescuers are searching for two people, including a schoolboy. in oth prefectures in southern japan have been warned to evacuate because of possible landslides. some residents had to be rescued by boat before their houses were inundated by the rising floods. >> translator: i feel so relieved. the rain is easing off now. i hope it stops soon. one reason this is causing concern is because western japan is still recovering from a previous storm that hit the region earlier this month. and that's our broadcast for this hour of "newsline." back with more news in half an hour. i'm michio kijima in tokyo. thank you for watching. bye-bye.

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