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Southern Taiwan closes ahead of Typhoon Podul

Thousands of people were evacuated as a large swathe in southern and eastern Taiwan was shut down and hundreds of flights cancelled on Wednesday ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Podul later that day.

Taiwan is frequently hit by typhoons. These are usually along the sparsely-populated, mountainous east coast of Taiwan facing the Pacific.

Weather officials reported that the mid-strength Typhoon, Podul, which was packing wind gusts of up to 191 kph 118 mph, was headed for the city of Taitung in the southeast as it intensified. It was expected to landfall on Wednesday afternoon.

"Typhoon winds are expected to be destructive." "Take shelter as soon a possible," said a text message sent to cellphone users early Wednesday in certain parts of Taitung. The alert warned of gusts exceeding 150 kph in the next few hours.

Nine cities and counties, including southern metropolises Kaohsiung Tainan and Tainan, announced Wednesday's suspension of school and work. Taipei's capital, which is home to Taiwan’s financial markets had no effect.

Authorities are working to evacuate residents whose homes have been damaged by the typhoon of July, which brought record-breaking winds and damaged Taiwan's electricity grid.

The government reported that more than 5,500 people were evacuated before the arrival of the typhoon.

Transport ministry: All domestic flights - 252 - were cancelled Wednesday, while 129 international flights were also canceled.

Taiwan's China Airlines and EVA Air, the two largest international carriers in Taiwan, said that their cancellations were mainly focused on routes from Kaohsiung. Some flights also stopped at Taoyuan's international airport.

The storm will hit Taiwan's densely-populated west coast after making landfall before moving on to China's southern province, Fujian, later this week.

Central Weather Administration forecast that rain up to 600 mm (24 inches) could fall on southern mountainous regions over the next few weeks.

In some areas of the south, more than a full year's worth of rain fell in just one week, causing widespread flooding and landslides, and resulting in four deaths. (Reporting and editing by Ben Blanchard, Yimou Lee)

(source: Reuters)