Typhoon Mindulle is expected to cause serious damage to southern Taiwan today and residents should avoid carrying out activities in coastal areas in the southern, southeastern and southwestern parts of the island, according to the Central Weather Bureau yesterday.
All city and county governments announced last night, however, that offices and schools would remain open today.
Nevertheless, late last night the typhoon appeared to have changed course and was likely to head north, directly up the island, perhaps the most dangerous path that it could take.
PHOTO: CHIANG CHIH-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Yesterday morning, the bureau issued a land warning for areas including the Hengchun Peninsula, Taitung, Green Island and Orchid Island. In addition, vessels operating in the Bashi Channel, the waters off southeast Taiwan, or in the southern part of the Taiwan Strait should be on high alert against the typhoon, weather forecasters said.
According to the bureau, with a radius of 250km and packing maximum sustained winds of up to 180kph, Mindulle made landfall on Hengchun Peninsula last night and would further bring heavy rains to southern and eastern Taiwan today.
Yesterday morning, more than 20 fishing boats carrying more than 1,000 foreign fishermen were allowed to enter port in Tungkang, Pingtung County, to take shelter from the storm.
Since Kaohsiung was also listed as one of the seriously affected areas as a result of Typhoon Mindulle, Kaohsiung City Government yesterday set up a special task force to tackle possible emergencies.
Residents were reminded of the danger of entering certain coastal areas, including Shitzuwan (西子灣) beach, Chichin and some fishing ports. Those who unwisely insist on carrying out activities near the beach and have to be rescued by the city's task force will be requested to reimburse the government, in addition to being fined up to NT$250,000, officials said yesterday.
Mayor Frank Hsieh (
Due to strong winds and high waves outside Kaohsiung Harbor, the ferry services between Kaohsiung and offshore Penghu County were canceled.
The Soil and Water Conservation Bureau under the Council of Agriculture yesterday also established a special task force to monitor rainfall at potentially dangerous sites in mountainous areas and deal with possible emergencies involving landslides and mudflows.
Wu said that people living at such sites should pay serious attention to rainfall readings.
"Once the danger level is reached, evacuation under local government instructions will be the safest choice," the bureau's director-general Wu Huei-long (
Meanwhile, Water Resources Agency (WRA) Deputy Director Chen Shen-hsien (陳伸賢) yesterday ordered all river administrators be on the alert.
Earlier this year, it was discovered that 95 steel water gates around the nation had been stolen. By yesterday, only four water gates were not in place. However, WRA officials said the situation should cause no immediate danger.
"We've made 49 mobile pumpers available in order to mitigate the danger of possible flooding," Chen said.
Chen said abundant rainfall might ease the impending drought in the south.
Memories of the floods that inundated half of Taipei City during the passage of Typhoon Nari in September, 2001, spurred the Taipei City Government to be on the alert. To determine whether flood prevention measures have been implemented, Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
"The city government will announce potential danger areas vulnerable to floods once the Central Weather Bureau lists Taipei as a seriously affected place," Ma said.
DEFENSE: The first set of three NASAMS that were previously purchased is expected to be delivered by the end of this year and deployed near the capital, sources said Taiwan plans to procure 28 more sets of M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as well as nine additional sets of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), military sources said yesterday. Taiwan had previously purchased 29 HIMARS launchers from the US and received the first 11 last year. Once the planned purchases are completed and delivered, Taiwan would have 57 sets of HIMARS. The army has also increased the number of MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) purchased from 64 to 84, the sources added. Each HIMARS launch pod can carry six Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, capable of
GET TO SAFETY: Authorities were scrambling to evacuate nearly 700 people in Hualien County to prepare for overflow from a natural dam formed by a previous typhoon Typhoon Podul yesterday intensified and accelerated as it neared Taiwan, with the impact expected to be felt overnight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, while the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration announced that schools and government offices in most areas of southern and eastern Taiwan would be closed today. The affected regions are Tainan, Kaohsiung and Chiayi City, and Yunlin, Chiayi, Pingtung, Hualien and Taitung counties, as well as the outlying Penghu County. As of 10pm last night, the storm was about 370km east-southeast of Taitung County, moving west-northwest at 27kph, CWA data showed. With a radius of 120km, Podul is carrying maximum sustained
Tropical Storm Podul strengthened into a typhoon at 8pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with a sea warning to be issued late last night or early this morning. As of 8pm, the typhoon was 1,020km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving west at 23kph. The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA said. Based on the tropical storm’s trajectory, a land warning could be issued any time from midday today, it added. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said Podul is a fast-moving storm that is forecast to bring its heaviest rainfall and strongest
TRAJECTORY: The severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday, and would influence the nation to varying degrees, a forecaster said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it would likely issue a sea warning for Tropical Storm Podul tomorrow morning and a land warning that evening at the earliest. CWA forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) said the severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving west at 21kph and packing sustained winds of 108kph and gusts of up to 136.8kph, the CWA said. Lin said that the tropical storm was about 1,710km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, with two possible trajectories over the next one
RSS