Taiwan has shut down work, school and transport as the biggest typhoon to hit the island in decades made landfall on its east coast.
Kong-rey has been declared a “strong typhoon” by Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration (CWA), which said it was expected to be the largest storm to hit Taiwan since 1996.
Kong-rey struck the island later in the typhoon season, which typically stretches from May to October, than any typhoon since 1967.
Authorities have warned people to stay inside because of the high risk of landslides, storm surges, destructive winds and flooding, with more than 1.2 metres of rainfall expected. Authorities said more than 70 injuries had been recorded as a result of the typhoon by the time it made landfall, and one person was killed after their vehicle hit a fallen tree. Almost half a million homes were without power on Thursday afternoon.
Storm trackers have measured Kong-rey as the equivalent of a category 3 to 4 hurricane. The most recent reports measured gusts of more than 225km/h (140mph) and sustained winds of 183km/h near its centre. The large typhoon – with a radius of more than 320km and an eye of about 64km – prompted a warning for all of Taiwan’s main and outer islands.
Kong-rey made landfall near Taitung on Taiwan’s south-east coast at about 1.40pm local time on Thursday , before crossing the island and moving towards the Taiwan strait. The storm weakened once it hit land, but was expected to maintain typhoon strength as it moves over the central mountain range, with its outer bands stretching to cover the whole island.
Early on its approach, Kong-rey had already brought strong winds and torrential rain to cities including the capital, Taipei, in the north, where overground metro services were suspended. Schools, businesses, financial markets and national parks have shut across Taiwan for the day.
Lanyu Island, which sits offshore of Taitung and was in the direct path of Kong-rey, reported record high sustained winds of more than 213km/h, as well as gusts above 260km/h before wind barometers went offline.
“The size of the storm is very large and the winds are high,” said a CWA forecaster, Gene Huang.
About 8,600 people had been evacuated. Scheduled military exercises were cancelled owing to the typhoon – for the second time this year – and more than 30,000 troops were diverted to standby for disaster response. By Thursday morning, authorities had already issued 63 landslide warnings, and recorded four. Contact had reportedly been lost with two Czech nationals inside Taroko national park, near Hualien.
Hundreds of domestic and international flights were cancelled or rescheduled, and fishing boats and ferries recalled to harbours on Wednesday. Ship traffic trackers showed the usually busy waters around Taiwan were almost entirely empty on the island’s east.
Additional reporting by Chi-hui Lin and Reuters