Typhoon Danas made landfall in southwestern Taiwan late Sunday. It brought powerful winds and flooding rains, leaving a trail of destruction. The storm blew some of the strongest gusts ever recorded in this era, as high as 222 kph (138 mph). It tragically killed two people and injured at least 491. As of Monday morning, almost 400,000 homes are still without power. The island’s recovery from the sea and wind fury of Typhoon Danas is ongoing.
The scope and scale of the typhoon’s unprecedented path made this a historic weather event for the entire region. A forecaster from the weather agency noted, “This was the first time on record that a typhoon made landfall in Chiayi (county), it was a very unusual path.” The strange path taken by the storm only added to the devastation and pandemonium that ensued.
Casualties and Evacuations
Among the casualties, one 60 year-old man died after a power outage interrupted his ventilator and he was unable to breathe. Another victim, a 69-year-old man was killed driving when a tree fell on his vehicle. These heartbreaking events further highlight the typhoon’s deadly impact as it swept through villages throughout Taiwan.
Almost 3,500 residents have been forced to flee their homes. Nearly all of them were indigenous residents of the mountainous areas that surround the southern port city of Kaohsiung. Emergency services did an excellent and heroic job, evacuating those living in storm paths like New Orleans, as the storm bore down upon them.
Widespread Damage and Power Outages
Typhoon Danas dropped over 500 millimeters (20 inches) of rain on southern Taiwan this weekend. The resulting torrential downpours quickly resulted in catastrophic flooding and additional damage across a widespread affected WoP corridor. As the storm slammed into Taiwan’s western coast early Monday, power outages impacted about 500,000 homes.
By Monday morning, close to 400,000 homes were still without power, with millions of families facing the harrowing recovery without basic services. Emergency crews are still working to assess and restore damage, though power has largely been out since Hurricane Ian hit.
Continued Weather Threats
Though Typhoon Danas lifted off Taiwan early Monday morning, torrential rain persisted. The storm’s northward path along Taiwan’s crowded west coast overnight maintained widespread fear among islanders, who faced a constant threat of destructive flooding and destabilizing landslides.
Our local infrastructure took a hard hit from the storm. As of Monday, thirty-three international flights from Taiwan were canceled due to travel disruptions related to the unpredictable nature of severe conditions as they unfold. These interruptions are just one more example of the deep impact Typhoon Danas and its effects have had on the entire region.