As the island braced for its first typhoon this year, Taiwan moved thousands of people to safety on Wednesday. The airlines had also cancelled domestic flights and authorities issued warnings about floods and high seas.
According to the weather report, Typhoon Danas which is categorised as the weakest typhoon level was expected to hit the eastern county of Yilan late on Thursday. As per the weather officials, the typhoon was moving across the ocean in a northwesterly direction at 18 kph (11 mph).
According to the authorities, considering the warning more than 2,000 people including tourists mainly were evacuated to safe areas on islands off its east coast on Wednesday.
According to the authorities, amid fears of heavy rain which can trigger landslides and flooding, nearly two dozen domestic flights and ferry services were cancelled while in some area troops were put on standby.
Taiwan Premier Su Tseng-chang on Wednesday inspected the Central Emergency Operations Centre, ordering local government units to be fully prepared. Officials urged residents in low-lying coastal areas in eastern, southern and southeastern Taiwan to stay alert for possible floods being caused by Danas.
Danas is also expected to affect northern parts of the Philippines on Wednesday and Thursday, bringing flood risk there.
It’s an almost regular pattern that typhoons hit Taiwan, China, the Philippines, and Japan in the second half of the year, as the typhoon gathers strength from the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean or the South China Sea.
Typhoon Morakot devastated Taiwan in 2009, killing nearly 700 people, most of them in landslides.
