A tanker smashed into a bridge connecting the Kansai International Airport with the mainland and left around 3,000 people stranded as strong winds and high waves from the powerful Typhoon Jebi blasted western Japan, according to Japan's NHK News Agency.
The 11 crew members on board have been rescued and no one was injured.
The airport was completely shut down Tuesday afternoon as one runway was totally covered in water because of the storm surge and several planes were submerged up to their engines, said a Transport ministry official.
The powerful typhoon has left nine people dead and more than 300 injured in Japan.
