The Central Weather Bureau yesterday issued a land alert as Typhoon Hagupit threatened southern Taiwan.
Residents in Taitung, Hengchun (恆春), Green Island, Lanyu (蘭嶼) and Pingtung should brace for heavy rainfall, the bureau said, adding that vessels operating in the Bashi Channel, the southern end of the Taiwan Strait and the Dongsha islands (東沙群島) should also be on alert.
As of 9:15pm, Hengchun was already covered by the storm’s perimeter. The center of the storm was 270km south of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻). The radius of the storm reached 280km and was moving west at a speed of 26kph.
PHOTO: CNA
Because of the typhoon, Taitung County canceled classes and work for last night.
Bureau forecaster Hsieh Ming-chang (謝明昌) said Hagupit was moving fast and the bureau could lift both land and sea warnings by this afternoon.
Hsieh warned though that even after the land alert is lifted, residents in the southwest coastal area still needed to look out for stormy weather brought by the strong southwest wind.
Local governments in the eastern and southern counties, including Taitung, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Chiayi, had activated emergency operations centers in light of the approaching storm.
Ferry services between Kaohsiung and the Penghu islands — about 41km off the southwest coast of Taiwan — have also been suspended for two days, yesterday and today, because of the typhoon.
Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Highways said yesterday it would enhance inspections of 16 high-risk bridges nationwide.
All 16 bridges are on the top of a list of 40 bridges that need to be repaired immediately.
The DGH will dispatch personnel to monitor the situation, and they will determine on the spot whether any of the bridges should be closed.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
RSS