DHAKA: Taiwan has been hit by a third typhoon in two weeks, a powerful storm that killed at least four people and injured hundreds of others.

This time the eye of the typhoon Megi passed directly over the middle of the island, from east to west, starting its journey at Hualien City, reports the Al Jazeera.

Electricity was cut for millions of residents as blown-down trees severed power lines. An estimated 72,000 households were left without running water.

The previous two typhoons kept their eyes offshore but both delivered significant rain and damaging winds.

Typhoon Megi made a direct hit, and came ashore as the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane, on the Saffir-Simpson Scale. It delivered heavy rain and damaging winds too.

The weather observers in Hualien City reported a maximum gust of 155km an hour. This is strong enough to overturn Lorries, and this has indeed happened.

Reports from Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau showed steady winds of 100km/h in Taichung City with gusts of 198km/h on Tuesday afternoon.

Taichung is on the west coast of Taiwan and this suggests that Megi dropped from a Category 3 typhoon to a tropical storm as a result of the Taiwanese geography.

Megi gathered the seas to produce 11-metre high waves east of Taiwan.

Bands of rain revolving around the typhoon covered the entire country.

In six hours of Tuesday morning, Taipei recorded 75mm.

The potential from Typhoon Megi is 400mm on level ground but much more in the hills.

BDST: 1735 HRS, SEP 28, 2016
NJ/BD