Super Typhoon Nepartak threatens Taiwan

[waltky]

Super typhoon headed toward Taiwan...

Taiwan braces for Typhoon Nepartak, 200 mph winds expected
July 7, 2016 -- Thousands of people in Taiwan have been evacuated ahead of a powerful typhoon packing wind gusts in excess of 200 mph and more than 3 feet of rain, which could usher in landslides and flash flooding.

Super Typhoon Nepartak is expected to cross the island country's central mountainous region Thursday into Friday. The storm is positioned to also threaten Japan's Ryuku Islands and eastern China. Flights to and from the area have been canceled and some 35,000 soldiers have been put on standby. Maximum wave height is 43 feet.

Mean lookin' typhoon headed toward Taiwan​

Mandarin Airlines, TransAsia Airways and Air China are among the many carriers that canceled flights to China, and northeast and southeast Asia. Train service has been suspended. The national agriculture and food agency said vegetable prices increased about 20 percent as consumers stocked up before local markets closed ahead of the storm. There is no food shortage, however.

The storm, named after a Micronesian warrior, is expected to weaken as it crosses the mountainous terrain of Taiwan, but will reorganize as a tropical storm or typhoon in the Taiwan Strait to move into southeast China. Taiwan has been hit by storms in the past, but this is the first since December 2015, the country's longest period without a named storm. The Himawari-8 satellite shows Super Typhoon #Nepartak churning through the Pacific Ocean. https://t.co/IXX2nuFNhM pic.twitter.com/iOBt2wfCNP

Taiwan braces for Typhoon Nepartak, 200 mph winds expected

 

[waltky]

Nepartak kills 2 in Taiwan, moves toward China...

Super Typhoon Nepartak kills 2 in Taiwan, moves toward China
July 8, 2016 -- Two people were killed and 72 were injured as Super Typhoon Nepartak ravaged Taiwan early Friday with winds up to 150 mph and severe flooding.

The storm came ashore about 10 miles south of Taitung City, located on the southeast coast of Taiwan, with the strongest winds the area has seen in 61 years. Roofs were ripped off, trees were toppled and cars were overturned. The storm weakened as it crossed mountainous Taiwan and was headed to China.

Officials said one man died after falling into Seven Star Lake in Hualien. He was rescued by helicopter but later died. A soldier died after falling into the sea, authorities said. At least 72 people were injured by falling objects in Taitung County. Some 15,000 people remain evacuated from low-lying areas.

China was preparing for the storm Friday. Authorities issued an orange alert, the second of the country's three-tiered alert system. Train and ferry service have been canceled in some areas. The storm is expected to bring strong winds and rain to the coastal regions of Fujian and Zhejiang. It comes at a time when parts of China are struggling with flooding that has devastated some areas.

Himawari-8 animation of Super Typhoon #Nepartak approaching the southeastern coast of Taiwan on the morning of 7/7. pic.twitter.com/NwahMOyvsa​

Super Typhoon Nepartak kills 2 in Taiwan, moves toward China

 

[Mr. H.]

We need one of those in the GOM. Why is Mother Nature so uncooperative?

 

[waltky]

Nepartak leaves Taiwan, heads toward China...

More than 400,000 people evacuated as tropical storm hits China
July 9, 2016 -- Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated along the east of China after tropical storm Nepartak made landfall on Saturday.

The storm, which started as a strong typhoon but weakened after devastating Taiwan, made landfall in Shishi City at 1:45 p.m. local time on Saturday bringing 62-mph winds. "As anticipated, Taiwan's mountainous terrain weakened Nepartak considerably," Weather Channel meteorologist Jonathan Erdman said. "However, regardless of its intensity, heavy rainfall will continue to be a concern in Taiwan and southeast China, likely triggering areas of flooding into the weekend."

A Chinese man stands on a lane divider now under water as he fishes on the banks of a swollen Yangtze River in Chongqing August 27, 2010. About 420,000 people were urged to evacuate and multiple modes of transportation were shut down after Typhoon Nepartak made landfall in Shishi City​

About 420,000 people were urged to evacuate and multiple modes of transportation were shut down including five airports, 341 high-speed trains and almost 5,000 buses. China's State Oceanic Administration issued the first red alert of the year, estimating wave heights up to 30 feet in Taiwan Strait. Local flood headquarters said that more than 22,600 people have been dispatched to check the city's water projects.

The storm, which weakened into a tropical storm after devastating Taiwan, carried 62 mph winds as more than 22,600 people have been dispatched to check the city's water projects.​

China suffered 160 deaths and 28 people went missing in other heavy rains and floods in the weeks before the storm arrived. Two people died and 72 more were injured when the storm touched down in Taiwan the day before. The storm also caused about $24 million in agricultural damage, left 545,696 households without electricity and damaged seven provincial highways.

More than 400,000 people evacuated as tropical storm hits China

 

[waltky]

Nepartak grounds flights...

Flights suspended ahead of Nepartak
Fri, Jul 08, 2016 - DAY OFF: Except for Matsu and Kinmen, classes and work have been canceled across the nation, with the center of the typhoon forecast to make landfall at 6am or 7am

Nearly a quarter of the international flights at the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport were either canceled or postponed yesterday due to the imminent arrival of Typhoon Nepartak. As of 8:30pm yesterday, the center of Nepartak was 180km southeast of Taitung. It was moving northwest toward Taitung at 14kph, according to the Central Weather Bureau. The bureau forecast that the center of the typhoon would make landfall at Taitung between 6am and 7am today, adding that the storm’s center is to enter the Taiwan Strait at 5pm today.

Schools and workplaces will be closed today across the nation, except for Kinmen and Matsu (Lienchiang County). Nepartak also brought strong winds to Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼), with the wind speed reaching level 15 on the Beaufort scale. Taiwan uses an extended Beaufort scale that has a maximum reading of 17. Figures from Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) showed that 35 outbound passenger flights and 75 inbound flights had been canceled as of 6pm yesterday, while 12 passenger flights were delayed. Eighteen cargo flights were also canceled and six cargo flights were delayed.

A total of 157 domestic flights were suspended because of the storm, the Civil Aeronautics Administration said. The Taoyuan airport denied reports that it would suspend all international flights today, saying that airlines own different types of aircraft and follow different procedures for flights under various weather conditions. The airport will not be closed unless the air traffic control tower is not operating, TIAC said, advising passengers to contact the airlines for the latest flight information. Several domestic and international carriers have announced that some of their flights will be canceled today.

EVA Airways (長榮航空) said that flights leaving from Taoyuan airport to Osaka, Okinawa and Sapporo in Japan; Incheon, South Korea; and Hong Kong, Macau and Zhengzhou, China, have been canceled. Other flights scheduled to depart from Taoyuan airport this morning will all leave after 11am, EVA Air said. Flights from Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport), Taichung Airport and Kaohsiung Airport will operate as scheduled, the company said. Uni Air (立榮航空), a subsidiary of EVA Air, said that flights from Taoyuan to China’s Fuzhou and Qingdao have been canceled.

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