Typhoon Tess 1953

From the Carolines to Japan

Tess developed near the Caroline Islands and moved northwest across the western Pacific. It intensified to a Category 5 equivalent on 22 September, when the archive records one-minute sustained winds of 150 kt and a central pressure of 900 hPa at 06:00 UTC. The typhoon then weakened as it turned northeast toward Japan.

On 25 September, Tess crossed the Shima Peninsula and reached Aichi Prefecture. Its sampled center-over-land wind estimate was 65 kt, far below its oceanic peak. The archive continues through 29 September, beyond the end of its tropical-stage observations on 26 September.

Flooding across the Kinki region

River flooding overwhelmed communities around Kyoto and Osaka. A breach along the Uji River inundated the former Ogura Pond area, including Mukojima, Uji and Kumiyama, where drainage took weeks. Floods along the Yodo River entered thousands of homes, in some places reaching upper floors.

The reported toll was 393 people killed and 85 missing. The historical account lists 86,398 houses destroyed, 495,875 flooded, and more than 318,000 hectares of agricultural land damaged. Broken bridges and railway links hindered travel, while telephone failures isolated communities across the affected region.

Rescue and coastal protection

Police and volunteers rescued residents in the Osaka–Kobe area, and construction crews built emergency dikes. Workers restored damaged telephone lines as floodwater receded. Tess's storm-surge damage contributed to the push for modern coastal defenses and the enactment of Japan's Coast Act in 1956.