Typhoon Podul Pummels Taiwan, Triggers Evacuations and Power Outages

Typhoon Podul blasted Taiwan’s east and south coasts on Wednesday, with the storm generating wind gusts up to 178 kilometers per hour as it made landfall in Taitung County. The system prompted the closure of schools and government offices, forced the grounding of hundreds of flights, and triggered wide-scale evacuations and power outages. By day’s end, one person was missing after going fishing, dozens were injured, and authorities said more than 7,000 residents had already been evacuated as the storm swept across regions still recovering from recent bad weather.

The Central Weather Administration warned that Kaohsiung, Tainan and Chiayi would become major rainfall hotspots, with heavier downpours also forecast for Penghu and Kinmen. “We are worried about this typhoon,” said Lu Kuochen, the agency’s administrator, at a briefing that was attended by the president. Local fishermen, preparing for the worst, tied down boats and described the sense of urgency as Podul intensified. “We had already made general typhoon preparations yesterday, but this morning I woke up and saw news reports that the typhoon has intensified to be as strong as the last,” one fisherman said, recalling a...