DDozens of people were injured in Taiwan by Typhoon Haikui. The storm brought gusts of up to 190 kilometers per hour and heavy rain on Sunday. He uprooted trees, cut off power to thousands of homes on the island and canceled hundreds of flights. More than 7,000 people from high-risk areas had been brought to safety in advance.
Haikui was the first storm to hit Taiwan directly in four years. The authorities reported more than 40 injuries. According to the weather service, the typhoon made landfall around 3:40 p.m. (local time, 9:40 a.m. CEST) and thus earlier than expected in Taitung County in eastern Taiwan. It whipped across the country with wind speeds of 154 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 190 kilometers per hour.
The authorities had warned in advance of a “considerable threat” from the passage of “Haikui”. President Tsai Ing-Wen called on the population to “prepare” and “not go outside” if possible.
“I think this time it’s serious”
Around 4,000 people in the most vulnerable areas have been brought to safety and more than 200 domestic flights have been cancelled. Shops remained closed in most regions in the east and south of the island. Thousands of people were without power before the storm hit.
In Taitung, people crouched inside their homes and stayed away from the windows. Trees fell and water tanks were thrown around, a journalist from the AFP news agency reported. Wind and heavy rain covered the landscape in a dense veil of fog.
NOAA-NASA Suomi NPP satellite image shows Typhoon Saola passing Hong Kong on the left and Typhoon Haikui on the right westbound toward Taiwan.
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Image: dpa
“I think this time it’s serious,” said 58-year-old Chang Jhi-Ming. Farmer Chen Hsin-Kuang, 62, pointed out that Taiwan has not been hit by a typhoon for a long time. “Only today you can see such waves – a rare sight!”
“Super Typhoon” in southern China
According to a weather service official, “Haikui” was “progressing faster than expected.” By the evening, the hurricane reached the area around the southwestern city of Kaohsiung. The typhoon weakened on its way there, but wind speeds of 126 kilometers per hour were still measured.
The Taiwan Weather Service warned of heavy rains in the mountains of Yilan, Hualien, Taitung, Kaohsiung and Pingtung. This increased the risk of landslides. Taiwan’s army mobilized soldiers and equipment such as amphibious vehicles and inflatable boats for disaster relief. On Monday, “Haikui” is expected to cross the Taiwan Strait towards mainland China, the weather service said.
Typhoon Saola made landfall in southern China on Saturday night. There, as well as in Hong Kong, “Saola” was expected with great concern: almost 900,000 people had previously been brought to safety from endangered areas, millions of residents sought protection in their homes. However, before it reached the Chinese special administrative region of Hong Kong, the “super typhoon” weakened and the damage was less than feared. Among other things, uprooted trees, collapsed scaffolding and broken windows from Hong Kong were reported.
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