Typhoon Champi has severely disrupted daily life across East Asia, bringing powerful winds and heavy rain to Taiwan as it moves toward southern Japan. Schools, offices and the stock exchange have been closed in Taiwan
Typhoon Champi has severely disrupted daily life across East Asia, bringing powerful winds and heavy rain to Taiwan as it moves toward southern Japan. Schools, offices and the stock exchange have been closed in Taiwan, while more than 1,000 domestic and international flights have been cancelled in Taiwan and Japan. At least one person has died and 94 others have been injured in Taiwan, while thousands of people have been moved to safer locations. The storm, one of the most powerful typhoons in the region this year, has prompted widespread weather alerts and disrupted travel for thousands of passengers.
Ahead of the typhoon, schools and public and private offices were suspended on Friday in almost all of Taiwan's 22 counties and cities. Only the remote island of Kinmen in the west continued normal activities. Taiwan's stock exchange was also closed for the day. Disaster management authorities reported that one person died after being swept away by sea waves on Liuqiu Island, southwest of Taiwan. The fire department confirmed that 94 people had been injured in traffic accidents and other incidents involving falling objects. More than 1,000 people have been evacuated from high-risk areas.
Premier Cho Jung-tai urged residents to stay away from dangerous zones. Particular concern surrounds a temporary landslide dam at Wanli Creek in Hualien, where approximately five million cubic metres of water have accumulated, raising fears that the dam could collapse. Residents in low-lying areas are being evacuated. All 262 scheduled domestic flights and more than 660 international flights in Taiwan were cancelled on Friday. Railway services, ferry operations and major highways were also closed.
Japan has also experienced significant disruption from Typhoon Champi. Japanese airlines, including All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Japan Airlines (JAL), cancelled flights to Miyako and Ishigaki airports in Okinawa, as well as all flights to Taipei. More than 11,000 passengers were affected. According to Okinawa Electric Power Company, strong winds and heavy rain left more than 3,630 households without electricity. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi urged the public on social media to exercise extreme caution over powerful winds, high waves, landslides and rising river levels.
China's meteorological authorities issued a blue alert, the lowest level in the country's four-tier warning system, for the typhoon. An orange alert, the second-highest level, was issued for coastal areas of Zhejiang province, which are considered particularly vulnerable. The storm is expected to move past Shanghai and other parts of China's eastern coastline over the weekend, bringing an estimated 50 to 80 millimetres of rainfall.
Meteorologists said Champi was moving northwest toward Taiwan, where its effects were expected to remain severe through Friday and Saturday night. By Saturday afternoon, the storm was forecast to move away from the Chinese coast and turn toward southern and eastern Japan and South Korea's Jeju Island. Scientists say this year is shaping up to be one of the most active typhoon seasons in recent years. Champi is reportedly Japan's 30th typhoon of the year, the highest number since 2013. In the Philippines, the storm has been named Rosal. Experts suggest that unusual El Niño conditions in the Pacific Ocean may be contributing to the formation of numerous powerful tropical storms across the region.
