Typhoon Lionrock
High waves triggered by Typhoon Lionrock crash on a coast of the city of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo August 30, 2016. Kyodo via Reuters

Super typhoons that hit East Asia have become more intense and frequent four times, says a new research by US scientists. The study by researchers at the University of South Carolina’s (USC) Department of Marine Sciences identify climate change as the reason behind the stronger weather disturbances.

The study, published in Nature Geoscience on Tuesday, says the intensity of typhoons landing in the East Asian region has grown 12 to 15 percent more intense. Those that land in Southeast Asia, with category 4 or 5 strength, more than doubled in number, particularly for those that hit China, Taiwan and the regions north, reports Sydney Morning Herald.

Professor Wei Mei of USC and author of the study, warns that in the future, global warming would cause the giant storms to become even strong which would threaten the large and growing coastal populations of China, Japan, Korea and the Philippines. “People should be aware of the increase in typhoon intensity because when they make a landfall these can cause much more damage,” The Guardian quotes Wei.

Among the more destructive typhoons that battered East Asia in recent years were typhoon Haiyan which killed 6,300 people and affected 11 million in the Philippines in 2013. Another one was typhoon Nina which killed 229,000 people and destroyed buildings in China after it dumped 110 cm of rain in one day in 1975.

Nine people died in Taiwan and China when typhoon Nepartak battered the region in July. Last week, typhoon Lionrock killed 11 people in Japan and cause power outages and property damage.

Mei adds that additional warming would further intensify storms that hit the main economic centres of the region, mainly China, Taiwan, Japan and Korea due to faster warming of waters of 20 degrees north. He calls for action to prepare for future typhoons and reduce carbon dioxide emissions to curb warming.

VIDEO: Typhoon Haiyan caught on camera by International Space Station

Source: AP Archive