Typhoon Krathon crossed the southwest coast of Taiwan packing dangerous winds, with the storm leaving thousands of customers without power and shutting the stock exchange a second day.
Krathon had maximum sustained winds of 126 kilometers (78 miles) per hour before making landfall in Kaohsiung’s Xiaogang district at 12:40 p.m. local time, according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration. That’s equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale.
The slow-moving storm has brought heavy rain to Taiwan all week, pummeling the industrial and shipping hub of Kaohsiung and the historic former capital of Tainan. More than 84,000 customers are currently without power, according to state-owned Taiwan Power Co.
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Taipei authorities announced late Wednesday that schools and offices would remain closed, even as Taiwan’s capital has been relatively unscathed so far compared to the south. Heavier rains are forecast for the city, its nearby mountains, and neighboring New Taipei City through Friday morning.
The two-day stock market closure is only the third since 2016 and it follows a similar shutdown in July when Typhoon Gaemi hit the island. Several Taiwanese companies issued statements to the stock exchange that cash dividend payments may be delayed because the typhoon has shut offices.
The risk of floods and landslides forced the evacuation of almost 10,000 people, with 123 injured, two missing and two dead, as of Thursday morning, according to authorities. Some high speed rail operations have also been suspended.
There is some uncertainty on what happens next. Taiwanese authorities predict the storm will continue slowly moving north over the island and weakening to a tropical depression. However, Japan’s weather bureau sees the system boomeranging south, doubling back into the South China Sea.
Another forecaster — the US Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center — sees the storm initially moving north over the island before veering west into the Taiwan Strait and tracking toward Hong Kong.
Photograph: Members of the Taiwan Coast Guard walk along the coast at Sizihwan beach in Kaohsiung on Oct. 2, 2024. Photo credit: Walid Berrazeg/AFP/Getty Images
Related:
- Update: Taiwan Warns of Storm Surge From Powerful Typhoon, Troops Mobilized
- Powerful Typhoon Krathon Forecast to Hit Taiwan’s Populated West Coast
Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters
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