Saomai, the second strongest typhoon in the western Pacific in 2000, developed from an area of disturbed weather in open sea on August 31.

The typhoon later entered the East China Sea, where it recurved towards the northeast before making landfall on South Korea as a severe tropical storm, later transitioning into an extratropical cyclone on September 16.

As a developing typhoon, the outer rainbands of Saomai affected the Mariana Islands, causing moderate damage.

[nb 2] Even before Saomai made landfall on Okinawa, the typhoon caused rough seas off the coast of Japan that resulted in several shipping incidents.

As Saomai tracked near China, its outer rainbands and strong waves prompted the evacuation of 20,000 people and caused record high stream heights.

Widespread power outages took a toll on as many as 422,000 homes and heavy rains flooded numerous fields of crops.

In Russia, where the typhoon made landfall as an extratropical storm, nine people were killed due to car accidents spurred by rainfall caused by the Saomai.

[1] Despite the satellite presentation, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) classified the system as a tropical depression at 1800 UTC on August 31.

A cold central dense overcast eventually developed,[1] and at 1200 UTC the next day, Saomai became a severe tropical storm.

[1] Upon reaching typhoon strength, Saomai attained an initial peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 120 km/h (75 mph).

This break in the storm's westerly course was short lived, and early on September 6, Saomai assumed its previous heading.

Over time the shearing conditions gradually abated, and rainbanding about the cyclone was showing signs of organization and strengthening.

On September 8, Saomai finally re-developed a central dense overcast,[1] prompting the JMA to upgrade the tropical storm back to typhoon intensity at 0000 UTC the following day.

[1] At 1200 UTC on September 10, Saomai reached its peak intensity with sustained winds estimated at 175 km/h (109 mph) and a minimum barometric pressure of 925 mbar (hPa; 27.32 inHg).

[1] Shortly after 1000 UTC on September 12, the typhoon made landfall on central Okinawa, Japan with sustained winds of 140 km/h (87 mph) and a pressure of 945 mbar (945 hPa; 27.9 inHg).

At its westernmost point along its track, Saomai was located approximately 345 km (214 mi) east of Wenzhou, China.

Atmospheric conditions became increasingly more hostile as Saomai tracked northeast, and the typhoon became elongated and ragged in appearance.

[1] At 1200 UTC on September 15, Saomai was downgraded to severe tropical storm intensity as the cyclone began to undergo extratropical transition.

[2] Early in Saomai's developmental history, the rainbands associated with the storm dropped heavy rain across the Northern Mariana Islands.

[6] The waves also caused a dozen containers from the South Korean Heunga Nagoya to fall into the sea 5.5 km (3.4 mi) off the coast of Susami and Wakayama Prefecture.

The rains caused extensive flooding, prompting the Cabinet of Japan to make reassurances in the repair of the ensuing damage.

[19] Several flights into Nagasaki Prefecture were cancelled; the rains there also caused agricultural damage totaling JP¥99 million (US$910,000).

On September 10, the provincial government established a disaster warning headquarters on Daito Island to more efficiently deal with the typhoon's effects.

[27] As Saomai approached South Korea, the typhoon forced the cancellation of flights beginning on September 12.

Other suspensions of transportation included the refuge of 362 fishing boats in ports and the closure of 10 national parks and 43 mountain paths.

[30] Heavy rains caused the Nakdong River to breach a section of embankment, prompting the evacuation of 100 families.

[38] Relatively minor damage occurred in North Korea,[39][40] previously impacted by Typhoon Prapiroon earlier in September.

[45] Despite being a much weaker storm upon impacting Russia,[1] Saomai's rains flooded coal retrieval sites, cutting down on electric power supplies in Primorsky Krai.