Largest Storm Hit Taiwan

Heavy rains and high winds lashed Taiwan on Thursday as the largest storm to hit the island in nearly three decades made landfall along its southeast coast, killing at least one person and injuring dozens.

Typhoon Kong-rey packed winds approaching 200 kilometers per hour (125 mph), equivalent to a Category 3 Atlantic hurricane, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC), as it made landfall in Taitung county on Thursday afternoon.

Kong-rey’s radius of maximum wind – how far the strongest winds are from its center – measured 320 kilometers (nearly 200 miles) on Wednesday evening, making it the largest storm to hit Taiwan since Typhoon Herb in 1996, said Chang Chun-yao, a forecaster with the island’s Central Weather Administration (CWA).

At least two were killed, and more than 500 storm-related injuries were reported, according to Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operations Centre (CEOC)

A 56-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree while traveling by car in the central county of Nantou, and a 48-year-old man died on Thursday night after he was hit by an electric pole that fell during the typhoon in Taipei.

Ahead of the powerful storm, local authorities ordered offices and schools to temporarily close, while Taiwan suspended trading on its stock market.

Taiwan generally has a strong track record of responding to major typhoons, though remote villages in more mountainous regions can be particularly vulnerable to landslides.

Taiwan’s military put more than 34,000 soldiers on standby to assist with rescue efforts, and over 8,600 people had been evacuated from high-risk areas on Wednesday, the CEOC said.”

More than 500 flights, including 300 international journeys, have been cancelled, and all ferry services to Taiwan’s outlying islands have been suspended, according to Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration. High-speed rail services are operating at limited capacity, according to the rail operator, while the Taipei metro said it had suspended services on open-air sections

CNN/Shakirat Sadiq