Three U.S. Air Force members are missing and feared dead after being swept away in a typhoon that hit Okinawa, Japan, Sunday.
'Three Airmen were washed out to sea from the northwest coast of Okinawa' at about 3:45 p.m. local time Sunday (2:45 a.m. ET), the Kadena Air Base said in a statement.
The Japanese Coast Guard, and two HH-60 helicopters from the 18th Wing at Kadena Air Base have responded and operations are ongoing, according to the base statement.
The U.S. Air Force said only that three of its airmen were missing.
The powerful typhoon is heading toward Tokyo after lashing southern Japan. The Meteorological Agency says Typhoon Phanfone was off the coast of Shikoku in southwestern Japan on Sunday night, packing winds of up to 90 miles per hour after hitting the southern regions of Okinawa and Kyushu.
Several people on Kyushu island were injured.
The agency predicts up to 16 inches of rain in central Japan by Monday morning.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. Entities 0 Name: Japan Count: 4 1 Name: Okinawa Count: 3 2 Name: U.S. Air Force Count: 2 3 Name: Kyushu Count: 2 4 Name: Kadena Air Base Count: 2 5 Name: Tokyo Count: 1 6 Name: Phanfone Count: 1 7 Name: Shikoku Count: 1 8 Name: Meteorological Agency Count: 1 9 Name: Japanese Coast Guard Count: 1 10 Name: Associated Press Count: 1 Related 0 Url: http://ift.tt/1xcPbKk Title: Typhoon Phanfone on course to lash Tokyo with heavy wind, rain Description: Typhoon Phanfone, which was downgraded from an earlier status of a super typhoon, is moving at 20 kph (12 mph), the Japan Meteorological Agency said on Sunday. It is expected to head north after hitting parts of Kyushu and Okinawa islands with heavy rain and wind.
