Page 3 - Typhoon

Taiwan clears up, slowly re-opens after devastation from Typhoon Krathon

Typhoons almost always hit Taiwan's mountainous and sparsely populated east coast which faces the Pacific Ocean

Taiwan hospital fire leaves at least 9 dead as typhoon hits island's south

A fire at a hospital in southern Taiwan killed at least nine people Thursday as the island was being battered by a typhoon. The fire occurred in Pingtung county, which has been hit hard by Typhoon Krathon, which made landfall in the afternoon with torrential rains and heavy winds and has brought parts of the island to a standstill. Those who died inhaled smoke from the fire, the source of which was still under investigation. Soldiers from a nearby base were mobilised to aid medical workers and firefighters in the evacuation of patients and putting out the flames. Reports said 176 patients were rushed to the front entrance and transferred to ambulances or tarps, used to shield them from the pouring rain. They were moved to shelters nearby. Krathon made landfall in the major port city of Kaohsiung, packing winds of 126 kph (78 mph) with higher gusts, according to Taiwan's weather authorities. The slow-moving typhoon has doused eastern and southern parts of the island over the past f

Weakened but still strong Typhoon Krathon hits Taiwan, two people dead

An approaching typhoon bringing strong winds and torrential rainfall to Taiwan killed two people and injured more than 100 people over the past few days while forcing thousands to evacuate from low-lying or mountainous areas. At least 102 people were injured and two people died due to weather conditions attributed to Typhoon Krathon, Taiwan's Central Emergency Operation Center said on Wednesday. One elderly man died after falling off a ladder while pruning tree branches in the eastern city of Hualien. Another man died after crashing into fallen rocks while driving in Taitung county. Two others were missing. The typhoon, packing maximum sustained winds of 173 kilometres per hour and gusts of 209 kilometres per hour, was expected to make landfall early on Thursday on Taiwan's densely populated west coast, according to the Central Weather Administration. The strongest winds are expected on the island's southwest portion. Typhoons rarely hit Taiwan's west coast, affecting instead the .

4,000 evacuated as typhoon bringing heavy rain heads toward Taiwan

A typhoon bringing strong winds and torrential rainfall slowly advanced Wednesday toward Taiwan, where thousands of people have been evacuated from vulnerable low-lying or mountainous terrain. At least 93 centimeters (3 feet) of rain has fallen in the coastal Taitung County in the past four days and 29 centimeters (11.4 inches) in the major port city of Kaohsiung ahead of Typhoon Krathon. The typhoon, packing maximum sustained winds near the center of 173 kph (108 mph) and gusts of 209 kph (130 mph), is expected to make landfall early Thursday on Taiwan's densely populated west coast, according to the island's Central Weather Administration. Typhoons rarely hit Taiwan's west coast, affecting instead the mountainous, eastern side of the island. Authorities shut schools and government offices across the island and canceled all domestic flights. In the eastern Hualien County, more than 3,000 people were evacuated from townships vulnerable to landslides. Almost 200 people in the ...

Taiwan shuts down ahead of Typhoon Krathon's arrival, heavy rain forecast

The typhoon has weakened, but the threat from a storm surge and strong winds and rain remains as it slowly makes its way towards Taiwan's coast, the weather administration said

Taiwan warns of storm surge from Typhoon Krathon, mobilises 40,000 troops

The rail line connecting southern to eastern Taiwan was closed, though the north-south high speed line was operating as normal, albeit with enhanced safety checks for wind and debris

Taiwan shuts schools and offices ahead of direct hit from powerful typhoon

Taiwan closed schools and offices and evacuated hundreds from vulnerable areas around the island Tuesday ahead of a strong typhoon expected to hit its populated western coast after lashing northern Philippine islands. More than 500 people were moved from mountainous regions prone to landslides. Nearly 40,000 troops were mobilized to help with rescue efforts, according to the Defense Ministry. Typhoon Krathon is expected to hit the major port city of Kaohsiung in the island's southwest on Wednesday morning then move across the center of Taiwan and northeast toward the East China Sea, according to the Central Weather Administration. It is expected to be felt in the capital Taipei on Wednesday and Thursday. In Kaohsiung, a city of 2.7 million people, many stores and restaurants were closed. Up to 80 centimeters (31 inches) of rain was forecast in its mountainous areas. The storm was moving toward the island with maximum sustained winds of 198 kph (123 mph) and gusts of 245 kph (152 mp

Intensifying Typhoon Krathon forecast to hit Taiwan's populated west coast

The typhoon is expected to further intensify into the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane, packing powerful winds

Powerful typhoon lash northernmost islands of Philippines, schools shut

A powerful typhoon was lashing the northernmost islands of the Philippines on Monday, prompting officials to evacuate villagers, shut down schools and inter-island ferries and warn of "potentially very destructive" damage to coastal villages. Typhoon Krathon was last tracked over the coastal waters of Balintang island off the provinces of Cagayan and Batanes with sustained winds of up to 175 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 215 kilometres per hour, according to government forecasters. The slow-moving Krathon was blowing westward and could strengthen into a super typhoon when it veers northeastward on Tuesday toward Taiwan, they said. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage. The weather agency warned of "moderate to high risk of life-threatening storm surge" in the next 48 hours in the coastal villages of Batanes, the nearby Babuyan islands and Cagayan province and said fierce winds could rip off roofs, topple trees, damage farmlands and whip up high waves. "T

Myanmar's toll from Yagi rises past 200 with tallying hindered by civil war

Floods and landslides in Myanmar triggered by last week's Typhoon Yagi and seasonal monsoon rains have claimed at least 226 lives, with 77 people missing, state-run media reported Tuesday. The death toll, reported in the state-run Myanma Alinn, was almost seven times Friday's initial total of 33, with strong prospects of it continuing to rise. The counting of casualties has been slow, in part due to communication difficulties with the affected areas as Myanmar is wracked by civil war. Typhoon Yagi earlier hit Vietnam, northern Thailand and Laos, killing almost 300 people in Vietnam, 42 in Thailand and four in Laos, according to the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance.

Two dead in China as Typhoon Bebinca downgraded to tropical storm

Two people died in China's eastern Jiangsu province as Typhoon Bebinca brought torrential rains and powerful winds before easing into a tropical storm, state media reported Tuesday. Two residents of Zhoushi Town, about 80 kilometres northwest of Shanghai, were hit by a falling high-voltage power line and electrocuted on Monday, according to state broadcaster CCTV. They are the only known deaths thus far to be caused by Bebinca, which swept over the megacity of Shanghai and neighbouring provinces on Monday, flooding roads with water and broken tree branches and knocking out power to some homes. One resident of Shanghai's Chongming Island was also reported injured by a falling tree. More than 414,000 people were evacuated ahead of the powerful winds and torrential rain. Schools were closed and people were advised to stay indoors, while flights, ferries and train services were suspended. The typhoon, which weather authorities described as the strongest to hit Shanghai since at least

'Operation Sadbhav': India sends aid to typhoon-hit Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos

Typhoon Yagi: India dispatched 10 tonnes of aid to Myanmar via INS Satpura, while an Indian Air Force C-130J aircraft is delivering 35 tonnes to Vietnam and another 10 tonnes to Laos as part of relief

Typhoon Bebinca makes landfall in Shanghai; largest to hit city in 75 years

Bebinca, the strongest typhoon to have hit China's Shanghai city in 75 years packing wind speed of 42 meters, made landfall on Monday bringing the megacity of 25 million to a grinding halt. The typhoon, with the maximum wind force near its center reaching 42 meters per second, churned ashore at the Lingang area of Shanghai's Pudong District, the Shanghai central meteorological observatory said. The city has already mobilised thousands of relief and rescue workers to attend to emergencies. Bebinca is believed to be the strongest typhoon to land in Shanghai in 75 years. It is the 13th typhoon to hit China this year. The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on Sunday activated a Level IV emergency response for east China's Anhui Province and raised the response in Shanghai and Zhejiang to Level III, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Bebinca has already led to flight cancellations over Shanghai and the suspension of passenger ferry operations in the city. Shanghai

Typhoon Yagi costs Vietnam $1.6 billion, may lower growth: Officials

The typhoon, which made landfall on Sept. 7, killed at least 292 people and left 38 missing as of Monday morning, according to data from Vietnam's disaster agency

Shanghai airports cancel hundreds of flights as Typhoon Bebinca draws near

Shanghai's airports are cancelling hundreds of flights Sunday as they brace for impact from Typhoon Bebinca, which is due to make landfall in the early hours of Monday morning, the authorities said. Flights past 8 pm local time will be cancelled at Hongqiao and Pudong airports in the city, the airport officials said in a statement, affecting more than six hundred flights. The city also announced that it was suspending travel on some bridges while restricting that on other highways. Typhoon Bebinca is currently a few hundred kilometers away from the coast. The typhoon's winds are expected to reach 151 km per hour by Sunday night, according to the China Meteorological Administration, which has categorised it as a strong typhoon. State media reported that 9,318 people had been evacuated from one district in Shanghai. Meanwhile, in the nearby city of Zhoushan, restaurants, supermarkets and shops shut down early for the day, and public transportation services were halted. The storm is

Vietnam toll climbs to 199 as Yagi aftermath brings flash flood, landslides

Nearly 200 people have died in Vietnam in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi and 128 are missing as flash floods and landslides take their toll, state media reported Thursday. Vietnam's VNExpress newspaper reported that 199 people have died while more than 800 have been injured. In the capital, flood waters from the Red River receded slightly but many areas were still inundated with water neck-high in some places. In Hanoi's Tay Ho district, people waded through muddy brown water above their knees to make their way along one street, some still wearing their bicycle and motorcycle helmets after abandoning their vehicles along the way. A few paddled along the road in small boats as empty water bottles, a stryofoam cooler and other flotsam drifted by; one man pushed his motorbike toward drier ground in an aluminum sloop. Pedestrians hiked up their shorts as high as possible to avoid being soaked by the wake caused by a delivery truck powering its way through the water. Bakery owner Mai A

Typhoon Yagi worsens in Thailand; many evacuated, rescue efforts underway

At least 33 people have died across Thailand since mid-August from a spate of rain-related incidents including landslides

Vietnam death toll climbs to 197 after typhoon, flash floods & landslides

Nearly 200 people have died in Vietnam in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi and more than 125 are missing as flash floods and landslides take their toll, state media reported Thursday. Vietnam's VNExpress newspaper reported that 197 people have died and 128 are still missing, while more than 800 have been injured. The death toll spiked earlier in the week as a flash flood swept away the entire hamlet of Lang Nu in northern Vietnam's Lao Cai province Tuesday. Hundreds of rescue personnel worked tirelessly Wednesday to search for survivors, but as of Thursday morning 53 villagers remained missing, VNExpress reported, while seven more bodies were found, bringing the death toll there to 42.

Bridge collapses as more rain lashes Vietnam; storm deaths rise to 50

A bridge collapsed Monday as more rain fell on northern Vietnam from a former typhoon that caused landslides, flooding, power outages and at least 21 deaths, state media reported. The busy steel bridge over the engorged Red River in Phu Tho province collapsed Monday morning, local officials told state media. Several motorbikes and cars fell into the river, the initial reports said, adding that three people fished out of the river in ongoing rescue operations had been taken to the hospital. No casualties have yet been reported. Typhoon Yagi was the strongest typhoon to hit Vietnam in decades when it made landfall Saturday with winds up to 149 kph. It weakened to a tropical depression Sunday, but the country's meteorological agency has still warned the continuing downpours could cause floods and landslides. On Sunday, a landslide killed six people including an infant and injured nine others in Sa Pa town, a popular trekking base known for its terraced rice fields and mountains. Overal

Yagi kills 35 in Vietnam as officials warn of rain that can cause flooding

At least 14 people have died and 176 others injured in Vietnam after Typhoon Yagi slammed the country's north, state media said Sunday, as officials warned of heavy downpours despite its waning power. Described by Vietnamese officials as one of the most powerful typhoons to hit the region over the last decade, Yagi left more than 3 million people without electricity in northern Vietnam. It also damaged vital agricultural land, nearly 116,192 hectares where rice and fruits are mostly grown. Hundreds of flights were cancelled after four airports were closed. The typhoon made landfall in Vietnam's northern coastal provinces of Quang Ninh and Haiphong with wind speeds of up to 149 km per hour (92 miles per hour) on Saturday afternoon. It raged for roughly 15 hours before gradually weakening into a tropical depression early Sunday morning. Vietnam's meteorological department predicted heavy rain in northern and central provinces and warned of floods in low-lying areas, flash floods in ...