The biggest storm near Taiwan in 30 years is causing widespread disruption – an emergency

HONG KONG, October 31. /TASS/. Supertyphoon Kong-Rey had a radius of 320 km, making it the largest typhoon recorded near Taiwan since 1996, according to the island’s Central News Agency.

Taiwanese meteorologists report that winds with speeds exceeding 25 m/s are felt at a distance of 150 km from the center of the storm, and winds with speeds above 15 m/s are recorded at a distance of 320 km.

The last tropical cyclone of this size to hit Taiwan was Typhoon Herb in 1996, which killed 51 people and injured more than 460.

Supertyphoon Kong-Rey made landfall on Taiwan’s eastern coast around 1:40 p.m. local time (8:40 a.m. Moscow time) in Taitung County. The authorities declared Thursday a day off from work, canceled classes at educational institutions and put emergency services on high alert. More than 500 flights and almost 140 ferry routes were canceled across the island. At least one person is dead, 73 are injured, and approximately 8,600 residents have been evacuated from high-risk areas.

The storm formed on October 25 in the western Pacific Ocean near the Philippines and intensified into a typhoon on October 29.