Typhoon Kai-Tak (啟德) left at least one person dead yesterday, but was downgraded to a tropical storm and was expected to leave Taiwan early this morning.
Weather officials, however, warned the public to be alert for possible landslides and mudflows in central Taiwan after a full day of heavy rain and winds.
The typhoon slammed into Taiwan's east coast yesterday morning at 25km per hour, causing gusts and heavy rain around the island.
It was reported that accumulated rainfall in some areas in southern Taiwan exceeded 500mm. Weather officials said that northern Taiwan may see heavy rain today and in the next few days.
Premier Tang Fei (唐飛) went to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) with Cabinet members yesterday morning to conduct emergency measures and urged the public to remain calm and vigilant.
A CWB forecaster, Chen Yi-liang (陳怡良), told the Taipei Times that Orchid Island (蘭嶼), off the coast of Taitung County, had sustained gusts of up to 54m per second due to its exposed position. However, Chen said the gusts may subside in intensity today.
Gusts also caused a large-scale blackout in eastern and southern Taiwan and left nearly 10,000 families without electricity.
Although Taiwan Power Company (Taipower,台電) restored power to most locations by yesterday afternoon, the cooling system for generators at the Third Nuclear Power Plant (核三廠) in southern Taiwan was forced to shut down due to the appearance of warning signals.
In Pingtung County, limited visibility was cited as the cause of a deadly car crash on the coastal Ping-o Highway (屏鵝公路). The driver of one car Lin Liu-chuan (林柳川) died of his injuries and his wife, Kuo Mei-chih (郭美枝), and daughter, Wang Shu-en (王淑恩) suffered severe injuries.
A Kaohsiung resident surnamed Huang (黃) was also in critical condition after being struck by lightning at Shitzuwan (西子灣) beach, where he was watching enormous waves yesterday afternoon.
In Taipei County, police yesterday morning rescued more than 20 tourists trapped by rising rivers in Wulai (烏來).
In Nantou County, several villages threatened by possible mudflows and landslides were placed on a state of alert.
Residents in Pipa borough (枇杷里) were evacuated, taking no chances after a local resident was killed in a mudflow on July 1.
According to borough warden Lai Teng-tang (賴登堂), over 20 families had moved into temporary shelters erected in the wake of the 921 earthquake.
Chairman of the Council of Agriculture Chen Hsi-huang (陳希煌) said yesterday that residents living in mountainous areas should be careful because 370 creeks and rivers in central Taiwan listed as dangerous may overflow and create mudflows or landslides.
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