Typhoon Dan was downgraded to a tropical storm yesterday as it swept across the front-line island of Kinmen. Winds toppled power lines -- causing a blackout to the entire area -- and thousands of trees lining streets were uprooted.
Statistics issued by state-run Taipower indicated that nearly 70 percent of Kinmen's power lines were downed by trees.
Officials from the company said it could take as long as three days for power to be restored.
PHOTO: WU CHENG-TING, LIBERTY TIMES
Dan -- the most powerful typhoon of the season -- also caused damage to parts of southern Taiwan. In Kaohsiung city, powerful winds and waves burst a dike in the scenic tourist spot of Hsitzuwan (
Gale-force winds also swept through historic Tainan city, toppling an already earthquake-damaged dike at the mouth of Luerhmen River (鹿耳門溪).
On the island of Penghu, Dan toppled houses and sunk several fishing boats, forcing Makung airport to close for part of the day.
With heavy rains threatening further damage to quake-stricken areas, the Council of Agriculture yesterday released a new landslide warning. According to the report, there are at least 122 landslide sites located in disaster areas.
Officials from the council said rainwater flowing over landslides could turn them into gravel streams, endangering people living nearby.
As Dan made landfall on China's coast yesterday, the Central Weather Bureau lifted typhoon warnings for Taiwan last night.
Weather forecasters said Taiwan's weather system should stabilize within the next couple of days.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
EASING ANXIETY: The new guide includes a section encouraging people to discuss the threat of war with their children and teach them how to recognize disinformation The Ministry of National Defense’s All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency yesterday released its updated civil defense handbook, which defines the types of potential military aggression by an “enemy state” and self-protection tips in such scenarios. The agency has released three editions of the handbook since 2022, covering information from the preparation of go-bags to survival tips during natural disasters and war. Compared with the previous edition, released in 2023, the latest version has a clearer focus on wartime scenarios. It includes a section outlining six types of potential military threats Taiwan could face, including destruction of critical infrastructure and most undersea cables, resulting in
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
RSS