The island cleared up and offices and financial markets reopened after the powerful Typhoon Kong-rey swept through it causing two deaths and snarling transport, as the remnant of the storm brushed the Chinese coast.
Kong-rey slammed into Taiwan’s mountainous and sparsely populated east coast on Thursday afternoon, the largest storm by size to hit the island in nearly 30 years.
It then worked its way across central Taiwan before entering the Taiwan Strait and moving north.
The fire department put the death toll at two – one person whose truck was hit by a falling tree in central Taiwan, and another in Taipei who was hit by an electricity pole. It also reported 515 injuries.
More than 1.2m of rainfall was recorded in the eastern mountains during the typhoon and gusts above 130kph swept the Taipei metropolitan area on Thursday night into yesterday, knocking down more than 2,000 trees and hundreds of street signs.
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te yesterday warned people to watch out for the whip in the tail of the storm, including in the Taiwan-run Matsu islands off China’s coast.
“We still have to remind everyone that the typhoon’s periphery will still affect all parts of the country, especially people in Matsu and mountainous areas around the country, and they should pay attention to localised heavy rainfall,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
Workers in Taipei gradually removed fallen trees which snarled traffic, delaying the arrival of some ministers for a parliament session.
In the Taroko National Park in Hualien county, rescuers flew to safety in a helicopter two Czech hikers who had been trapped by the typhoon.
Flight disruptions continued yesterday, with 58 international flights cancelled along with 139 domestic ones, though the northsouth high speed rail link resumed normal operations.
Authorities were also rushing to remove 284 tonnes of oil from a Chinese carrier that ran aground off the island after losing power in rough seas due to Typhoon Kong-rey.
The Chinese-flagged Yu Zhou Qi Hang was transporting three cranes from Keelung, in northeast Taiwan, to China on Tuesday when it stalled in wild weather, authorities said yesterday.
A Taiwan coast guard vessel was deployed to rescue the 17 crew and the Chinese ship drifted to the shore of Yehliu Geopark, northeast of Taipei, where it ran aground.
The Yu Zhou Qi Hang was carrying 247 tonnes of heavy fuel oil and 37 tonnes of light diesel oil, the coast guard said.
An AFP photographer yesterday saw red cranes above the water, one leaning heavily and touching the rocky shore, while the Yu Zhou Qi Hang was submerged.
Authorities hoped to start recovering the oil yesterday afternoon, an official in the Maritime and Port Bureau said.
The Ocean Affairs Council estimated it would take two to three days to finish, with its minister, Kuan Bi-ling, saying no oil had been detected leaking from the ship.
“I saw early this morning that there was no oil pollution at the scene,” Kuan said in a Facebook post yesterday.
“Nature is merciful and the oil tank was not damaged,” Kuan said, adding that oil spill containment booms had been deployed.
Heavy rain is forecast for the rest of yesterday in parts of central and southern Taiwan.
Even after losing power as it traversed Taiwan, Kong-rey remained a severe tropical storm as it entered the Taiwan Strait, bringing strong winds and heavy rainfall to the coastal Chinese province of Fujian.
Kong-rey will likely not make landfall in China but is expected to quickly swing back into the open sea later yesterday towards Japan. — Reuters/AFP
