1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
In focus
German election 2025Crisis in the Middle EastSyria
Latest audioLatest videos
Live TV
Nature and Environment

Typhoon Nesat lashes Taiwan

July 30, 2017

Typhoon Nesat has swept across parts of Taiwan, leaving a trail of chaos and destruction. The island is bracing for more flooding as a second storm batters the state.

https://p.dw.com/p/2hOH7
Umbrellas out as Typhoon Nesat hits
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Yeh

Torrential rains and powerful winds swept through Taiwan again on Sunday, bringing daily life to a halt a day after the first typhoon of the year flooded coastal towns and injured scores of people.

Typhoon Nesat made landfall in northern Taiwan on Saturday evening, bringing sustained winds of around 140 kilometers per hour (70 miles per hour) and gusts near 170 kilometers an hour.

The winds knocked out power to thousands of homes and sent debris flying through the air. 

Coastal towns in the southern region of Pingtung were hit by waves and heavy rain that flooded streets. 

At least 111 people were reported injured. Most of the injuries were a result of car accidents or people being hit by debris. Rescue workers said two people were severely wounded.

By Sunday Typhoon Nesat had moved onto China's Fujian province, but the island was slammed by a second weather system as Tropical Storm Haitang plowed through its south. 

The storm is expected to lash the island over the next two days, according to Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau.

Fallen motorcyclist during Typhoon Nesat
Thousands of homes are without electricityImage: Reuters/T. Siu

China's official Xinhua news agency said Typhoon Nesat had weakened as it moved toward the northwest at about 15 to 20 kilometers per hour.

At least forty people were reported to be trapped in southern Taiwan due to floodwaters and landslides.

Rescue work is underway in typhoon-hit areas.

Chinese authorities have evacuated more than 27,000 people from Fujian.

Read: Deadly typhoon Megi slams into southeast China after raking Taiwan

Fallen scooters after Typhoon Nesat
People were hit by falling objects and debrisImage: Getty Images/AFP/S. Yeh

cw/tj  (Reuters, dpa, AFP)