3 Dead, over 100 injured after Typhoon Nepartak clobbers Taiwan streets – ‘look like a bomb has gone off’

July 2016 – TAIWAN — Typhoon Nepartak is now spinning in the Taiwan Strait, after leaving three people dead and more than 100 injured in Taiwan. The storm came ashore in southeastern Taiwan as the equivalent of a Category 4 just after 6:30 a.m. local time Friday morning, but has been downgraded several levels as it moves toward China. “As anticipated, Taiwan’s mountainous terrain weakened Nepartak considerably,” said weather.com senior meteorologist Jonathan Erdman. “However, regardless of its intensity, heavy rainfall will continue to be a concern in Taiwan and southeast China, likely triggering areas of flooding into the weekend.”

One of the deceased was a Taiwanese soldier who was found dead Friday morning after falling into the ocean off Dongyin Island in the Taiwan Strait Thursday, according to Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operation Center. The other fatality was a man that drowned off a beach in Hualien County Thursday. A 71-year-old woman died from severe wounds after being hit by a falling piece of furniture, Focus Taiwan reports. The massive storm came ashore about 10 miles south of Taitung City, packing winds around 150 mph, damaging structures and dumping torrential rainfall on parts of the island nation.

“The streets already look like a bomb has gone off, and this is just the start of it… crazy power,” professional stunt rider Dave McKenna, who is currently in Taiwan, said on his Instagram account as the storm rolled in. “I’ve been in some back home in Australia but nothing like this,” he said. Storm trackers rode out the western half of the typhoon as it arrived in Taiwan during the overnight hours and into Friday morning, and reported damage to buildings and numerous trees downed by the massive storm.

Taiwanese authorities reported that more than 15,400 people have been evacuated from 14 counties and cities. About 520,000 households were affected by power cuts, predominately in Pingtung and Taitung counties, according to TaiPower.  Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operations Center spokesman Li Wei-sen told AP that more than 500 domestic and international flights have been canceled and others were delayed. “Yes, I am worried about it, same as everyone here,” fisherman Chen Chun-po told the AP.  –Weather