Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan’s northeastern coast early Saturday, leaving one dead and more than five hundred people injured. The powerful storm knocked down numerous trees, severed power lines, and caused widespread structural damage across Yilan County. According to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration, the cyclone reached gusts of up to 227 kilometers per hour near coastal areas. Although the former super typhoon began weakening, it maintained formidable wind speeds of 126 kilometers per hour near its center. Consequently, municipal authorities across northern and central Taiwan ordered a second consecutive day of office and school closures.
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Taiwanese emergency service personnel confirmed that a man swept away by massive waves on Liuqiu Island remained the sole casualty. However, total reported injuries rose to 527 as torrential rains and destructive squalls battered urban and rural districts. State utility provider Taipower reported that over 288,000 households suffered severe electricity blackouts during the height of the storm. Fortunately, emergency utility crews worked through the night and successfully reconnected power supplies to the vast majority of affected residents. Furthermore, transport ministry officials noted that 242 flights remained canceled on Saturday, showing significant improvement from Friday’s operational standstill.
The storm executed an unusual offshore loop near the Yilan coastline before pivoting north away from the island nation. Local residents in coastal communities described a terrifying and sleepless night as intense winds blew roof tiles and uprooted trees. Weather forecasters project that Typhoon Champi will continue tracking northward alongside mainland China’s eastern coastline before turning toward southern Japan. Although the cyclone is not expected to make direct landfall on the Chinese mainland, regional emergency agencies maintain high alerts. Therefore, coastal provinces in eastern China continue preparing for localized heavy rainfall and severe gale-force winds through Sunday.
In response to the approaching storm, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management dispatched specialized disaster management teams to eastern Zhejiang province. State media reported that local maritime authorities ordered over 3,800 fishing vessels back to safe harbors and evacuated island tourists. Additionally, regional administrators halted twenty-five offshore construction projects and suspended eighteen commercial ferry routes to ensure public safety. Local emergency departments deployed hundreds of rescue workers and readied thousands of firefighters for immediate disaster response operations. Consequently, coastal infrastructure across eastern China remains heavily fortified as the weakened storm progresses along its northern trajectory.
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Taiwanese emergency services continue clearing debris, clearing blocked roadways, and assisting displaced community members in hard-hit northern townships. Transport officials expect commercial aviation schedules and public transit networks to resume normal operations as atmospheric conditions stabilize over the weekend. Meanwhile, meteorologists in Japan continue monitoring the storm’s approaching path to issue timely warnings for southern coastal prefectures. Public safety agencies across East Asia stress that autumn typhoons require continuous vigilance despite fluctuating storm intensities. Ultimately, proactive disaster preparedness across Taiwan helped prevent larger loss of life during this major meteorological event.