Taiwan shuts offices, cancels flights as Typhoon Koinu nears

TAIPEI – Taiwan cancelled flights and shut schools and offices across parts of the south and outlying islands on Wednesday as

Typhoon Koinu closes in on its southern tip

.

The storm is bringing strong winds and waves of up to 7m high along the southern coast, Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration said in a statement at 8am on Wednesday.

Local governments shut schools and offices in Pingtung and Taitung counties and in the outlying Penghu and Green Island.

The typhoon is about 240km east of Taiwan’s southernmost tip, with sustained winds of 155kmh and gusts of up to 191kmh, according to the weather administration.

It is forecast to make landfall in south Taiwan around midday on Thursday. 

Airlines have cancelled more than 90 international and domestic flights over the coming days as at 10am on Wednesday, the Civil Aviation Administration said in a text message. Taiwan’s Maritime Port Bureau also suspended 12 shipping routes for Wednesday.

Sea and land warnings remain in effect across much of the south of Taiwan, with the authorities adding a heavy rain advisory for Taipei on Wednesday from late morning until night.

Koinu is forecast to exit Philippine territory on Thursday, according to its weather bureau, and “its passage over the rugged terrain of southern Taiwan will further weaken the typhoon”.

After making landfall in Taiwan, the typhoon is forecast to head towards the eastern coast of China’s Guangdong province, according to Hong Kong’s weather observatory.

The city will probably raise its lowest storm signal on Wednesday evening as the storm is forecast to bring winds and rain to Hong Kong from Friday and over the weekend, the observatory said in a statement.

In September, Hong Kong was

battered by Super Typhoon Saola,

the strongest storm to hit the city in five years, and record rainfall from the remnants of

Typhoon Haikui

.

The last time the city raised its maximum hurricane warning twice in the same year was in 1964, when it was hit by typhoons Ruby and Dot. BLOOMBERG