Two people have died in Taiwan and more than two million residents have been ordered to evacuate in Japan as Tropical Storm Mekkhala and a second system, Higos, brought torrential rain and severe flooding to East Asia on Friday.

In Taiwan, a 73-year-old woman was swept away by floodwaters in Kaohsiung, and a woman was found dead after her car became trapped in flooding in Hsinchu County, according to local authorities. Earlier reports had indicated no casualties, but the deaths were confirmed on Friday. The storm’s outer bands dumped nearly a metre of rain in parts of Pingtung County, triggering 487 flood incidents nationwide, with Kaohsiung, Pingtung, Taipei, and Tainan hardest hit. Authorities in Hualien County evacuated nearly 200 residents downstream of a rapidly filling barrier lake, a hazard that claimed 19 lives during a similar event last year.

In Japan, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency issued evacuation orders for 2.23 million people across 13 prefectures, from Kyushu and Okinawa to the Kinki region. The Japan Meteorological Agency warned of landslides, river flooding, and inundation as a seasonal rain front combined with warm, humid air from the storms. More than 200 flights were cancelled, dozens of train services suspended, and several expressways closed, the land ministry said. Toyota halted production at a Kyushu plant, and the military scrubbed a planned Osprey flight. The storms Mekkhala and Higos are forecast to interact, potentially producing the Fujiwhara effect, which complicates forecasting.

Mekkhala, downgraded from a typhoon, was moving north-northeast with maximum sustained winds of 23 metres per second, while Higos approached from the south, the Japan Meteorological Agency reported. Rainfall of up to 200 millimetres was forecast for Okinawa and western regions in 24 hours. In Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration said the heavy rain was fuelled by Mekkhala and an approaching weather front. TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said its factories were operating normally after taking precautionary measures. The full extent of damage and casualties remains provisional as the storms continue to affect the region.