Hundreds of Flights Canceled Due to Typhoon Champi in Taiwan

The News

The powerful Typhoon Champi crossing through the East Asia region has led to hundreds of flight cancellations in the area on Friday. Schools and institutions in Taiwan have closed their doors in anticipation of the typhoon, which is expected to bring up to 90 cm of rain and strong winds to the eastern part of the country until Saturday. Authorities reported one death and 171 injuries, with nearly a thousand people evacuated.

According to Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau, the typhoon may pass close to Taiwan’s eastern coast without making landfall, but weather officials warned that any change in the typhoon's path could lead to its landfall. A weather official in Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau told Reuters, "We cannot rule that out completely, especially if the typhoon stalls or changes direction."

The typhoon has led to the suspension of work and studies across Taiwan, including the suspension of trading in the local stock market. The typhoon also affected the Batanes islands in the Philippines, where local Facebook pages showed massive waves hitting coastal villages and closing roads.

Weather experts noted that this season is one of the most active in terms of typhoons, with 30 typhoons hitting Japan, a number not seen since 2013. This activity is attributed to the strong El Niño phenomenon, which leads to an increase in typhoons and severe weather events in the Pacific.

Taiwan’s weather bureau indicated that the heaviest rain would peak on Saturday morning and continue until evening, urging residents to stay away from the coasts and mountains. However, life continued as usual in Kinmen islands west of Taiwan.