Some 331,000 people were forced to relocate and direct economic losses of 1.7 billion yuan (249 million USA dollars) were estimated in the province, according to the local government Friday.
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China’s state news agency, Xinhua, said Meranti was the strongest storm to hit China’s coast since 1949.
Residents clean up a flooded street in Xiamen, in China’s eastern Fujian province after Typhoon Meranti made landfall on September 15, 2016. Fujian provincial government has so far allocated 60 million yuan in living relief for affected people.
People’s Daily China reported waves measuring up to 17 meters in height before the storm even landed. Kaohsiung International Airport in Taiwan was forced to cancel all domestic flights and most of its international flights as well. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.
In Taiwan, the Central News Agency reported one person was killed and 44 injured on the island by the storm.
The island’s Emergency Operation Center said the typhoon had resulted in estimated economic losses of about 100 million new Taiwan dollars (about 3.15 million USA dollars) in the agricultural sector.
Typhoons are quite common at this time of the year as they pick up strength while they cross the warm waters of the Pacific.
In the meantime, more than 32,000 boats returned to harbor, and over 300,000 people were evacuated from there.
Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau issued a typhoon warning for parts of the country on Friday, ahead of the storm’s arrival.
Meranti reached “super typhoon” status on Monday, having sustained wind speeds of up to 305 kilometers per hour.
According to Reuters, Meranti will continue to lose strength as it pushes inland and up toward China’s commercial capital of Shanghai, but will bring heavy rain. Water supplies in most areas had resumed by 8pm on Thursday.
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Meranti struck Taiwan as a powerful Category 5, classified as a super typhoon, with winds peaking at 230 m.p.h. and torrential rains.
