Severe Tropical Storm Khanun is barreling north and has engulfed southwestern Japan's Kagoshima Prefecture in heavy winds and rain.

The storm is expected to move further north through waters off the Kyushu region through Thursday.

The Japan Meteorological Agency says Khanun was moving northwest at 15 kilometers per hour. The storm was 110 kilometers off Yakushima Island in Kagoshima as of 6 a.m. on Wednesday. It was packing winds of up to 108 kilometers per hour.

Khanun's relatively slow advance has meant clouds hover, dropping heavy precipitation. In Miyazaki Prefecture, total rainfall from August 1 through 5 a.m. on Wednesday reached 654 millimeters in the Nango district in Misato Town.

Mudslide alerts have been issued in some areas in Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures.

Bands of heavy rain clouds could develop in the Amami region through Wednesday afternoon and in Kyushu through Thursday morning.

Record downpours could hit the Pacific side of western and eastern Japan through around Friday.

Rainfall in the 24 hours until Thursday morning is forecast to reach up to 300 millimeters in southern and northern Kyushu as well as the Shikoku region, 250 in Tokai, 200 in Amami, 180 in Kinki, and 120 in Chugoku.

Weather officials are warning of landslides, flooding in low-lying areas, overflowing rivers, violent winds and high waves.

Meanwhile, the officials say Tropical Storm Lan is expected to approach Japan's Ogasawara Islands in the Pacific from Thursday through Saturday.

The storm could then come close to the Izu Islands.