Everything You Need to Know About Typhoon Megi in Taiwan in 60 Secs

Other than the pen-pineapple-apple-pen song, here’s one other thing you should be aware of: Taiwan was going through a very difficult time.

Typhoon Megi, also known as Typhoon Helen to the Philippines, hit landfall on Taiwan on Tuesday 27 September 2016.

Typhoon Megi

Formed on 19 September 2016 and first discovered by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), it was initially classified as a tropical storm then later upgraded to a severe tropical storm.

When the storm was found trying to form an eye, the JMA and Joint Typhoon Warning Centre (JTWC) upgraded its status to a typhoon.

Classes, work and transport cancelled

The third typhoon to hit Taiwan, it made contact on the less populated east coast of the country at 1:30pm local time at a speed of 230kph.

Ahead of landfall, classes, work, the Taiwan stock exchange, domestic flights and high-speed rail operations were stopped.

Aftermath of landfall

According to CNN, 4 people were killed and a further 524 were injured by the typhoon. Over 2.7 million homes were left without electricity and 1000mm of rain fell in Yilan country.

A spokesperson for Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operations Center urged people in the country to stay home and stated that “most injuries came from accidents and flying objects”.

He also added that 1,400 people have been evacuated from mountainous regions and a further 2,900 are in shelters.

 

The mountainous terrain of Taiwan helped to weaken the typhoon, but when it made landfall in central Fujian, it remained a strong typhoon.

Super Typhoon Meranti

This happened when Taiwan was still recovering from the aftermath of the super typhoon Meranti, the strongest storm since 2013 in terms of maximum sustained wind speed.

Two were killed and a further 63 injured by the typhoon and 1 million households lost electricity power. Agricultural losses were estimated to be US$27 million.

Tropical Cyclone (Typhoon)Season

From the period of May to November, typhoons are common in the region and gain in strength as they travel across the warm Pacific waters.

Travellers travelling into the region are advised to pay attention to warnings issued by the Central Weather Bureau.

Featured Image: straitstimes.com

This article was first published on goodyfeed.com