Taiwan braces for typhoon, markets shut Monday

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan braced for the powerful typhoon
Haitang on Sunday, ordering schools, government offices and
financial markets to close on Monday as the storm bore down on
the island’s northeast coast.

The Central Weather Bureau issued a land warning for flash
floods and landslides, advising people to secure loose objects
outdoors and avoid trips to the mountains or the seaside.

The Taipei city government declared the capital would be
closed for business on Monday, shutting the island’s financial
markets as well. Most local governments in the north and east
made similar announcements.

With maximum sustained winds of 191 km/h (119 mph) and
gusts of up to 234 km/h (145 mph), Haitang had weakened to a
Category 4 storm from the maximum Category 5, but remains
highly dangerous.

By 1100 GMT, the typhoon’s center was about 270 km (168
miles) east-southeast of Taiwan’s eastern coastal city of
Hualien, and slowed down as it headed northwest at 13 km/h (8
mph).

Haitang is expected to sweep over the island between Sunday
and Monday before heading toward China if it stays on its
present course. The weather bureau’s forecasts show Haitang’s
eye passing slightly south of Taipei.

In 2001, one of Taiwan’s deadliest years for storms,
Typhoon Toraji killed 200 people. A few months later, Typhoon
Nari caused Taipei’s worst flooding on record and killed 100.

Typhoons gather strength from warm sea waters and tend to
dissipate after making landfall, frequently hitting Taiwan,
Japan, the Philippines, Hong Kong and southern China.