Taiwan closes schools and offices as typhoon Kong-rey reaches east coast

TAIPEI: Schools and offices have been closed in Taiwan as a powerful typhoon made landfall on Thursday, bringing high winds and floods to much of the island's east coast and northern areas. Flights and train service have also been suspended and 8,600 people moved to shelters.

Typhoon Kong-rey was blowing at 184 km (114 miles) per hour with gusts of up to 227 km (141 miles) per hour as it moved over the eastern county of Taitung. Parts of Yilan and Hualien Counties were inundated by heavy rain, but many farmers in the largely rural areas had already brought in their crops in anticipation of damage from the storm.

No deaths or major property damage have been reported from Kong-rey so far in Taiwan. The storm prompted villagers in northern Philippine provinces to evacuate to shelters on Wednesday. Taiwan authorities reported 27 injuries from the storm and said they were seeking to contact a pair of Czech tourists who had been hiking in Hualien's Tarako National Park, famed for its steep cliffs and mountain trails. Other travellers were advised to stay where they were.

Taiwan's capital Taipei was largely shut down as it was hit by high winds and heavy rains. Off the north coast, a tugboat was dispatched to tow away a Chinese-registered freighter that floundered and had been abandoned by its crew amid heavy seas.

China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory and regularly sends planes and warships around the island, largely suspended its patrols, with just eight planes detected around the island between Wednesday and Thursday, according to Taiwan's Defence Ministry.