The powerful storm first raked southern Taiwan, bringing torrential rains and winds of up to 230 mph (370 kilometres per hour) – faster than a Formula One race vehicle. The island issued a land warning as Typhoon Malakas approached, the Central Weather Bureau said in a statement on its website.
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More than 330,000 people were returning to their homes yesterday after being forced to flee the storm that meteorologists said was the world’s biggest this year.
It has reportedly killed seven people in Fujian, six people in Zhejiang Province and one in Taiwan Province, state-run Xinhua news agency reported today.
Typhoon Meranti left at least 11 people dead and millions of dollars of damage in its wake in Taiwan and China as the region braces for a second storm in less than a week.
A student walks past fallen trees blown down by gale at Xiamen University in Xiamen, southeast China’s Fujian Province, Sept. 15, 2016.
More than 700,000 people across 79 counties in the costal province were affected, among whom almost half had to be relocated, according to the ministry’s report.
More than 70,000 people were relocated, and 1.8 billion yuan in direct economic losses were caused, according to provincial authorities. Disaster relief and reconstruction were launched after Typhoon Meranti swept away and left severe damages.
Zhejiang was particularly badly affected.
The super typhoon, which shattered windows and disrupted water and power supplies, is the world’s strongest so far this year.
Shanghai was also affected by Meranti and witnessed its heaviest downpour this year from Thursday night to Friday morning, with 400 millimeters of precipitation.
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The typhoon, observed 530 kilometers off Taiwan’s east coast at 8 a.m. Friday, was bringing winds of up to 180 km per hour as it moved northwest and is expected to enter the East China Sea soon, the National Meteorological Center said.
