In Photos: Typhoon Wipha Hits Japan, 17 killed

Typhoon Wipha strikes Japan’s pacific coast on Wednesday, killing at least 17 people while 50 others are still missing.

The typhoon caused flooding and mudslide that destroyed homes and other buildings.

Izu Oshima island, which is about 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Tokyo was hardest hit by the disaster.

Police and firefighters were having difficulty getting to some stricken areas.

Here are the photos of the disaster…

A man struggles against strong wind and rain caused by approaching Typhoon Wipha at a business district in Tokyo October 16, 2013. A once-in-a-decade typhoon threatened Japan on Tuesday, disrupting travel and shipping and forcing precautions to be taken at the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant. (REUTERS/Toru Hanai)

An aerial view shows collapsed houses following a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha on Izu Oshima island, south of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. Four people were reported killed, schools closed, hundreds of flights cancelled and thousands were advised to evacuate as Typhoon Wipha pummelled Tokyo on Wednesday, although the Japanese capital escaped major damage. Mandatory Credit. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

An aerial view shows collapsed houses following a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha on Izu Oshima island, south of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. Four people were reported killed, schools closed, hundreds of flights cancelled and thousands were advised to evacuate as Typhoon Wipha pummelled Tokyo on Wednesday, although the Japanese capital escaped major damage. Mandatory Credit. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

Rescue workers recover the body of a victim from a site that was damaged by a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha in Izu Oshima island, south of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. Eight people were killed and over 30 missing, with nearly 20,000 people ordered to evacuate and hundreds of flights cancelled as Typhoon Wipha pummelled the Tokyo region on Wednesday, leaving piles of wreckage on one small island but largely sparing the capital. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

Rescue workers recover the body of a victim from a site that was damaged by a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha in Izu Oshima island, south of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. Eight people were killed and over 30 missing, with nearly 20,000 people ordered to evacuate and hundreds of flights cancelled as Typhoon Wipha pummelled the Tokyo region on Wednesday, leaving piles of wreckage on one small island but largely sparing the capital. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

Furniture and electrical appliances are scattered following a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha in Ibaraki, North of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. Eight people were killed and over 30 missing, with nearly 20,000 people ordered to evacuate and hundreds of flights cancelled as Typhoon Wipha pummelled the Tokyo region on Wednesday, leaving piles of wreckage on one small island but largely sparing the capital. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

Rocks are seen in a residential area following a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha in Kamakura, south of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. Eight people were killed and over 30 missing, with nearly 20,000 people ordered to evacuate and hundreds of flights cancelled as Typhoon Wipha pummelled the Tokyo region on Wednesday, leaving piles of wreckage on one small island but largely sparing the capital. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

Firefighters search for missing people among collapsed houses following a landslide caused by Typhoon Wipha on Izu Oshima island, south of Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 16, 2013. A typhoon killed 17 people in Japan on Wednesday, most on an offshore island, but largely spared the capital and caused no new disaster as it brushed by the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power station, the plant’s operator said. (REUTERS/Kyodo)

A golf course is submerged under water at Matsudo as Typhoon Wipha churn past Tokyo on October 16, 2013

Rescue workers look for survivors as they stand on the rubble of a house buried by mudslides after a powerful typhoon hit Oshima on Izu Oshima island, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Tokyo Wednesday morning, Oct. 16, 2013. Typhoon Wipha has lashed Japan, leaving at least seven people dead on a Pacific island south of Tokyo as it cut across the capital region and headed north. (AP Photo/Kyodo News)

Several houses in a residential area in Oshima are covered by debris of mudslides after a powerful typhoon hit Izu Oshima island, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Tokyo Wednesday morning, Oct. 16, 2013. Typhoon Wipha has lashed Japan, leaving at least seven people dead on a Pacific island south of Tokyo as it cut across the capital region and headed north. (AP Photo/Kyodo News

Fire fighters stand on rocks fallen from a cliff over a garage and a road in a residential area in Kamakura, southwest of Tokyo, after a powerful typhoon hit Japan’s metropolitan area Wednesday morning, Oct. 16, 2013. Typhoon Wipha triggered landslides and caused multiple deaths on a Japanese island off Tokyo, before sweeping up the country’s east coast, grounding hundreds of flights and paralyzing public transportation in Tokyo during Wednesday morning’s rush hour. (AP Photo/Kyodo News

Fukushima Governor Yuhei Sato (3rd R) inspects contaminated water tanks at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant on October 15, 2013

Graphic showing the path of Typhoon Wipha, which left at least 13 people dead in Japan on Wednesday

Parts of a house and an electric pole are crushed by large rocks in Kamakura, as Typhoon Wipha passed close to Tokyo on October 16, 2013

People struggle against strong wind and rain as Typhoon Wipha churns past Tokyo on October 16, 2013