Reuters reported that Taiwan (China) canceled hundreds of flights and closed schools, offices and financial markets on October 2 before super typhoon Krathon made landfall.
At 1:00 p.m. on October 2, the center of the storm was at about 21.9 degrees north latitude; 119.4 degrees east longitude, in the northeastern sea of the North East Sea, 130km southwest of Kaohsiung (Taiwan, China).
The strongest wind near the storm center is level 14-15 (150-183 km/h), gusting over level 17; moving north-northeast at a speed of 5-10 km/h.
Authorities in the port city of Kaohsiung, which is located in the eye of the storm, have asked people to stay home and away from the sea, rivers and mountains, warning of a repeat of Typhoon Thelma in 1977, which killed at least 37 people after devastating the city of 2.7 million people.
Forecasters say the threat of high waves, strong winds and heavy rains remains high as the storm slowly moves toward the coast of Taiwan (China).
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai said the storm will weaken as it makes landfall, but will still bring strong winds and rain.
"But if the storm moves north, the winds will get stronger, so the threat to Kaohsiung will continue and people cannot take this lightly," said Chen Chi-mai.
When it makes landfall, the storm could weaken into a tropical depression and dissipate something that has only happened once before in Taiwan (China) in 2001. That year's Trami dumped heavily on the rain, which led to severe flooding.
The fire department reported that as of October 2, one person had died, two others were missing and 70 people were injured due to Typhoon Krathon.
On October 2, domestic flights and 246 international flights were canceled, more than 10,000 people were evacuated, mainly in the south and east.
In Taipei, some shopping malls and stores are still open, with rain expected only later in the day.
Typhoons typically make landfall on the sparsely populated and mountainous east coast of Taiwan (China) towards the Pacific Ocean, but Typhoon Krathon is expected to make landfall in the island's flat western plains.
