Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operation Centre said five people were injured, while many power lines were brought down, some by falling trees, cutting electricity to 550,000 households. In July, Taiwan was also struck by super typhoon Nepartak, which is now the second strongest storm of 2016.
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Trains and shipping services were disrupted, while offices and schools in Kaohsiung and other cities were closed and nearly 1,500 people were evacuated, the centre said.
Meranti was a Category 5 typhoon, the strongest classification awarded by Tropical Storm Risk storm tracker, before it made landfall on the mainland and has since been downgraded to Category 2.
Weather forecasters said Meranti would continue to lose strength as it pushed inland and up towards China’s commercial capital of Shanghai, but would bring heavy rain.
In addition to strong winds and heavy rain, the bureau warned the public not to engage in angling or water activities along Taiwan’s seashores because of high winds and big waves.
Earlier, tens of thousands of homes lost power across Taiwan, with schools and businesses closed and flights cancelled.
A man walks past downed shipping containers at the Kaohsiung Harbour in Taiwan. More than half a million homes lost power as the storm passed through the island. A spokesman for Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau said that this is the world’s strongest so far this year.
Violent winds and torrential rains have disrupted transportation ahead of a major holiday, with over 300 domestic and global flights being cancelled.
As of 7 a.m. local time Wednesday over 1,500 people had been evacuated from affected areas, a Taiwan official told the news agency, adding that authorities are not expecting major damage.
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Super Typhoon Meranti is believed to the best strongest storm on earth so far in the 2016, and the strongest typhoon since Super Typhoon Haiyan slammed the Philippines in 2013. The storm caused a lot of damage and flooding in Taiwan but only five people were injured.
