Nearly 200 people injured as Typhoon Koinu brings ‘record’ windspeeds to Taiwan

Local authorities say power outages have affected more than 170,000 households

Typhoon Koinu brought one of the most formidable wind gusts ever recorded in Taiwan and injured more than 190 people as it swept through the southern tip of the country.

Local authorities said that power outages affected more than 170,000 households.

Typhoon Koinu brought gusts of up to 342.7kph when it crossed Taiwan’s outer Lanyu (Orchid) island on Wednesday night, local reports said.

Named after the Japanese word for “puppy”, Koinu struck the Hengchun peninsula in Taiwan’s southernmost region as a formidable category four typhoon. Fire services reported that 190 people were injured, primarily in cities along the west coast, such as Taichung, Tainan, and Kaohsiung.

While Taiwan is situated in an area prone to tropical cyclones, Typhoon Koinu marks only the second such storm to make landfall in the past four years. The previous one – Typhoon Haikui – struck the island in early September, causing injuries to dozens of people.

Koinu led to the closure of schools and offices in many parts of Taiwan, with the exception of the capital city, Taipei, which continued its normal operations. Local media reported that ferry services and domestic flights were either suspended or cancelled as a precautionary measure.

By noon on Thursday, over 200 flights were cancelled.

Typhoon Koinu is expected to weaken as it tracked westward, heading towards China’s southeastern coastline and eventually diminishing into a tropical storm.

There is a widely shared consensus among scientists that climate change is contributing to the intensification of tropical cyclones and increasing the likelihood of major storms.

Meanwhile, local media said that among the 190 injured were seven motorists and scooter riders in Chiayi County who crashed into fallen trees, were hit by toppled trees, or fell while riding their scooters due to strong winds. Two individuals were still hospitalised for head and shoulder injuries as of Thursday morning, it was reported.