Typhoon Prapiroon left four people injured in Japan's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa as a result of heavy rain and strong winds, local authorities said.

As of noon, the typhoon, the seventh of the season, was located 160 kilometers north of Kumejima Island in the East China Sea.

The typhoon was packing winds of up to 180 kilometers per hour with an atmospheric pressure of 965 hectopascals, as it moved towards Kyushu at a speed of 20 km per hour, the weather agency said.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), the typhoon is forecast to move in a northeasterly direction in the Sea of Japan after it closes in on Kyushu.

The agency said there is a likelihood the typhoon will cause heavy rain to be dropped across wide swathes of western Japan.

The JMA said that in the 24 hours to noon on Tuesday, Prapiroon will dump about 300 millimeters of rain on parts of southern Kyushu.

Northern Kyushu, Shikoku and Okinawa will also see heavy downpours, the agency said, warning the public of the potential for mudslides, flooding rivers and high wind speeds.

The typhoon caused the temporary evacuation of 130 people in Okinawa, prefectural officials said.

Xinhua