Japanese railways, TEPCO assess typhoon damage

Oct 29, 2019 | News On Japan

Oct 29, 2019 (NHK) - Major Japanese railway and utility companies expect a recent series of typhoons to hit their business hard.

One of them is the East Japan Railway Company. It estimates cancellations and service reductions due to Typhoon Hagibis will cut its October sales by about 110 million dollars.

Flooding caused by the storm damaged some cars on the Hokuriku bullet train line. That has led to reduced service on the route.

The West Japan Railway Company says the damage could push down sales for the year through March by about 26 million dollars.

The Central Japan Railway Company estimates damage caused by Hagibis will reduce its annual revenues by about 27 million dollars.

And Tokyo Electric Power Company or TEPCO, is posting an extraordinary loss of about 108 million dollars. That includes the cost of repairing utility poles and power distribution facilities damaged by Typhoon Faxai in September.

The storm caused extensive power outages, mainly in Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo. TEPCO is booking the loss for the April to September period.

The firm says costs include travel and accommodation expenses for other utilities that sent employees to help recovery efforts.

TEPCO says the monetary loss is the biggest it has sustained due to a natural disaster since 2011. That's when a massive earthquake and tsunami hit its nuclear power plants in northeastern Japan.

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