TAIPEI, Oct 22 (Reuters) – Taiwan issued a land warning on Thursday ahead of the arrival of powerful Typhoon Champi and cancelled more than 100 flights, with the storm expected to brush past the island’s northeastern coast and gradually weaken on approach.
At one point a super typhoon and one of the strongest storms in the Pacific this year, Champi weakened slightly on Thursday but was still packing gusts of more than 227 kph (141 mph) near its centre, according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration (CWA).
The storm is currently about 520 km (320 miles) southeast of Taiwan’s southern tip, the CWA said. The storm’s track shows it will pass northeastern Taiwan, turn north toward the Chinese coast and eventually move into southern Japan.
The administration said the typhoon’s radius expanded slightly to 320 km (199 miles), large enough to cover most of Taiwan, and weather experts said its impact could last nearly two days.
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te called for the public to get ready now for the typhoon, and avoid going to the mountains or the coast.
“A little more preparation means less risk,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
While typhoons are more common during the summer months, they can also strike in autumn, bringing strong winds and torrential rain.
Mobile phone alerts warning of waves of more than 6 metres (20 feet) were issued to coastal towns, while total rainfall of nearly one metre (3 feet) was expected in northern mountain areas, including the hills near the capital Taipei.
Champi is expected to be at its closest to Taiwan late on Friday, off its northeastern coast, before heading north in the direction of the seas off Shanghai.
Taiwan’s transport ministry said 125 flights had been cancelled on Thursday, mostly domestic ones, though the rail network was so far unaffected. The interior ministry said no evacuations of residents had yet been reported.
Taiwan is generally very well prepared for typhoons, which keeps casualties low.
The typhoon is forecast to pass over Japan’s westernmost inhabited island, Yonaguni, in Okinawa Prefecture.
In Japan, major carriers Japan Airlines, ANA and Skymark have cancelled more than 100 flights, mostly domestic, between Thursday and Sunday, disrupting travel for over 11,000 passengers.
(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Yimou Lee; Additional reporting by Mariko Katsumura in Tokyo; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Christopher Cushing)
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