2023-10-05 08:14:00
Typhoon Koinu grazed southern Taiwan on Thursday, bringing torrential rain and record winds of more than 340 kilometers per hour, the territory’s weather service said.
“Wind gusts of a maximum of 95.2 meters per second were measured on Orchid Island”, attached to the territory, “last night, which is a new record for Taiwan”, noted the services weather surveyed by AFP.
These gusts equivalent to 342.7 kilometers per hour hit the volcanic island located in southern Taiwan, inhabited mainly by farmers and fishermen.
The typhoon was initially expected to hit the south of the island of Taiwan, but “its trajectory deviated further south”, according to the weather service.
Experts point out that climate change has made it more difficult to predict the path of tropical storms, while increasing their intensity, leading to heavy rains or flash floods.
Second typhoon in a month
More than 200 international and domestic flights were canceled and 3,000 people evacuated from mountainous regions as a precaution before the arrival of the typhoon, the second to hit the territory in a month.
Some residents in Taitung County have stocked up on food.
“We live in the mountains and have to drive for a while to get here, so we stock up just in case,” Meng Xin, 26, told AFP.
The streets were deserted on Thursday and rain fell in the region, the wind also blowing away road signs and tearing off metal roofs.
Taiwan experiences frequent tropical storms from May to November, but Typhoon Haikui in early September was the first to hit the island in four years, triggering torrential rains, strong winds and forcing nearly 8,000 people to evacuate their homes. .
After the Taiwan region, Typhoon Koinu is expected to head towards the eastern coast of China’s Guangdong province which includes the city of Guangzhou, according to the Hong Kong Meteorological Observatory.
Hong Kong, bypassed by a typhoon last month before being hit by flooding caused by the heaviest rainfall recorded in 140 years, issued a typhoon alert at the lowest level on Wednesday evening.
10/05/2023 08:13:06 – Taipei (Taiwan) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
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