Super Typhoon Nepartak, one of the strongest storms in the world so far this year, made landfall in Taiwan early Friday morning local time, battering the island nation with heavy rain and whipping winds.
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Meanwhile, China renewed an orange alert for extreme weather – the second most severe in its weather warning system – as the typhoon was expected to strike coastal regions of southeastern Fujian Province and Zhejiang to the north early Saturday. Rescuers used rubber boats to move people around in waist-high floodwaters. Nepartak was forecast to reach Fujian province on mainland china on Saturday morning.
About 390,000 households had been affected by power cuts, a lot of them in Pingtung and Taitung counties, according to Taiwan’s emergency management service. A total of 302 global flights were canceled and the rail services were suspended, the fire agency said.
The typhoon will not hit land there but will intensify seasonal southwest monsoon rains, which could spark thunderstorms and flash floods on the main northern Luzon island, said government forecaster Aldzar Aurelio.
Authorities said more than 15,400 people were evacuated from 14 counties and cities.
Typhoon Nepartak has battered Taiwan, killing three people, injuring almost 200 and driving thousands from their homes.
At least three people were confirmed dead and 142 others injured Friday after a powerful typhoon swept across Taiwan.
The colour-enhanced image above was taken by the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument onboard NASA’s Suomi NPP satellite, and it gives a pretty insane overview of just how powerful the storm is.
As fast-moving Typhoon Nepartak makes its way across the Philippines Sea, large waves crash against the breakwaters in Ilan County, eastern coast of Taiwan, Thursday, July 7, 2016.
NASA satellites show super typhoon Nepartak approaching Taiwan.
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Food prices in Taiwan jumped ahead of the typhoon, local media reported, while transportation minister Ho Chen Tan promised Taoyuan International Airport would be able to withstand a direct hit from the storm.
