Typhoon Danas early this morning lashed southern Taiwan with record winds and strong rain, killing two people and injuring 334 in a rare hit to the nation's densely populated west coast, where businesses and schools were shut.
Taiwan is regularly struck by typhoons, but they generally land along the mountainous east coast.
Typhoon Danas, at one point listed by Taiwan's weather authority at the second-strongest level, headed north toward the Taiwan Strait after late last night making landfall in Chiayi County. Record winds of about 220kph were recorded in Yunlin County.
Photo: CNA
Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) this morning presided over a Central Emergency Operation Center meeting to assess the damage and coordinate the government's emergency response measures.
The two fatalities occurred in Tainan, where Danas brought heavy winds and torrential rain, the center said.
A 60-year-old man, who relied on a respirator, died after a power outage cut electricity to his medical equipment at about 2am, while a 69-year-old fruit vendor was killed when a falling tree struck him shortly after 4am, the center said.
Photo courtesy of a private contributor
As of 8am, 2,270 storm-related incidents had been reported nationwide, including damage to infrastructure and fallen trees, the center said.
Tainan recorded the highest number of injuries at 165, followed by Chiayi City with 55, it said.
People should remain alert, as there is still a risk of landslides and other hazards in mountainous areas in central, southern and eastern Taiwan, particularly in Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung cities and Chiayi, Hualien, Nantou, Pingtung and Yunlin counties, authorities said.
A total of 3,483 people were evacuated from 10 cities and counties, the center said, adding that Kaohsiung accounted for the largest share with 2,327 evacuees.
As of 7am, 47 shelters had been opened, housing about 580 people, it said.
Flooding was reported in 200 locations, with residual flooding in parts of Taichung (11 cases), Chiayi (three cases), Tainan (three cases), Kaohsiung (three cases) and Pingtung (one case), the center said.
A top-level flood alert remained in effect for some areas in Miaoli County and Taichung, it added.
Danas also caused widespread power and water outages.
The center said that 496,000 households experienced power cuts at the peak of the storm, with more than 388,000 still without electricity this morning.
Water supplies were disrupted for more than 68,000 households, with about 17,000 still waiting for service to be restored, it said.
The storm damaged 9,653 landline connections and 907 mobile base stations, the center said, adding that more than 7,000 lines and nearly 700 mobile stations were still offline.
About 8,000 tourists were stranded in outlying Penghu County, 2,000 in Lienchiang County (Matsu), 536 on Green Island (綠島) and 78 on Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) due to the suspension of transportation services, it said.
More than 300 domestic and international flights were canceled, government data showed.
Residents in vulnerable areas, especially in Pingtung County, should remain alert for mudslides, Liu said, calling on local governments to expedite recovery efforts and provide assistance to affected communities.
To stabilize consumer prices, the government would monitor fruit and vegetable supplies and work with supermarkets to offer discounts where needed, Liu said.
Danas was downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm at about 5am, and its center exited Taiwan at about 6am, the Central Weather Administration said.
As of 11am, Danas was 130km north of Taipei, moving northwest at 7kph to 12kph, with maximum sustained winds of 90kph and gusts of up to 119kph.
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