Taipei: Typhoon Gaemi has intensified and claimed at least eight lives in Taiwan since Wednesday, as reported by Focus Taiwan citing the Central Emergency Operations Centre (CEOC). The typhoon, now downgraded to a tropical storm, has moved on to China, but central and southern Taiwan may still experience significant rainfall.
Among the casualties are a 64-year-old woman in Kaohsiung who was killed by a falling tree, a 44-year-old woman in Hualien County crushed by a fallen rooftop wall, and a 78-year-old man in Kaohsiung who died in a landslide. A 65-year-old man in Tainan died after falling while repairing his home, and a 75-year-old scooter rider in Yulin County was killed in a collision with a fallen tree.
The CEOC also reported two unidentified bodies found in flooded fields in Chiayi County’s Shiushang Township and an Alishan Forest Railway employee found dead in his car, hit by falling rocks. Authorities are searching for a 67-year-old man believed to have fallen into a culvert in Chiayi County’s Fanlu Township.
The typhoon injured 866 people, with the highest number of injuries reported in Kaohsiung (259), followed by Tainan (125) and Taichung (120). To assist those displaced, 279 temporary shelters were set up for 1,232 individuals. Emergency services have received distress signals from nine vessels affected by the severe weather. Residents in eastern and southern Taiwan should be cautious of possible further showers and thunderstorms.