TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Typhoon Podul made landfall in Taiwan on Wednesday, where authorities closed schools and government offices as heavy rain threatened more damage to agriculture in the island’s southeast.
The storm hit Taitung county on the east coast shortly after noon, moving across the southern third of the island at about 36 kilometers (22 miles) per hour, at which rate it would head out to the Taiwan Strait and China by late afternoon, according to the Central Meteorological Agency.
It was unclear how serious the storm would be, with high waves and winds seen across much of the southeast but no major rain as of yet. according to the agency.
Such storms typically hit the east coast hard before losing speed and strength as they pass over the Central Mountain Range before continuing toward the Chinese coast. Podul measured 120 kilometers (75 miles) across and was expected to broaden even while losing strength as the storm moved westward across the Taiwan Strait.
The areas affected are well south of the capital, Taipei, along with Taiwan’s main international airport and high-tech industrial base. Around a dozen flights that would have traveled south toward the path of the storm were delayed or canceled.
The counties and cities of Tainan, Kaohsiung, Chiayi, Yunlin, Pingtung and Hualien on the east coast and the island group of Penghu in the Taiwan Strait were taking the brunt of the storm.
Along with flooding, typhoons routinely damage fruit and other cash crops and bring landslides through the island’s center. Much of central and southern Taiwan was badly hit by heavy rains in recent weeks that caused severe damage to crops but minimal casualties, while also knocking out electricity to rural areas that took weeks to repair.
Recovery crews are on alert.
