Two typhoons in Asia

Typhoon Talim veers away from Taiwan, moves towards Japan

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-asia-storm-vietnam/wind-and-rain-lash-vietnam-as-typhoon-doksuri-hits-idUSKCN1BQ0EN

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan will lift a shipping warning later on Thursday after Typhoon Talim veered away from the island and moved towards Japan but the capital, Taipei, and other cities can expect heavy rains from the storm, meteorologists said.

Some flight cancellations could also still be expected as northern Taiwan is lashed by heavy rain.

Talim had gained in strength since Wednesday as it approached Taiwan’s northern cities, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB), but it has now shifted north and will not make landfall in Taiwan.

It also might not hit the Chinese mainland as it veers towards Japan, the bureau said.

Japan’s southern Ryukyu Islands have begun to feel the effects, with reports that strong winds and heavy rainfall have caused power outages as the typhoon churns in the sea between Taiwan and Japan with maximum sustained wind speeds at sea of 173 km/h (107 mph) and gusts of up to 209 km/h (130 mph).

The bureau said bad weather associated with the storm will still be felt in the north and northeast of Taiwan on Thursday.

“The effects of Talim have been less severe than many international weather authorities predicted, including those of us in Taiwan, the U.S., China and Japan,” said CWB forecaster Wang Chun-hsien.

Talim had been expected to move towards China, where more than 200,000 people in Fujian and Zhejiang provinces have been evacuated, China’s official Xinhua news agency said.

The CWB’s current forecast projected the storm to veer northeast towards Japan’s western coast. However, it could change course again.

China Airlines and EVA Airways, Taiwan’s two largest carriers, said they would cancel some international flights later on Thursday due to the storm’s proximity.

Typhoons are a seasonal routine for Taiwan, but the island has stepped up preparations since Typhoon Morakat in 2009. Morakat was the deadliest typhoon to hit the island in recorded history, killing close to 700 people, most in landslides.

Wind and rain lash Vietnam as Typhoon Doksuri hits

HA TINH, Vietnam (Reuters) - Typhoon Doksuri lashed central Vietnam on Friday, tearing roofs from houses, knocking out power and causing localized flooding, in the country’s most powerful storm in years.

Nearly 80,000 people have been evacuated from coastal regions in preparation for Doksuri. Winds exceeded 130 km (80 miles) per hour, according to Vietnam’s meteorological agency.

The state news agency said the roofs had been blown from 260 houses in the ancient city of Hue. Electricity was knocked out in parts of Ha Tinh and Quang Binh provinces after the wind brought down power lines along with trees and billboards.

Four fishing boats sank as they were making their way back to land, state radio said. Many fishermen had dragged their small wooden boats into the streets of coastal towns to try to stop them from being carried away.

Streets in parts of Ha Tinh province were flooded. Airlines said 46 flights were canceled between the capital, Hanoi, in northern Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City, the commercial hub in the south.

Vietnam’s disaster prevention committee has said the storm surge from Doksuri could be greater than 2 meters (2.2 yards).

There were no immediate reports of deaths on Friday, but one person drowned in central Vietnam on Thursday after flooding caused by heavy rain that preceded Doksuri.

Vietnam often suffers from destructive storms. Floods in northern Vietnam killed at least 26 people and washed away hundreds of homes in August. Last year, more than 200 people were killed in storms

Typhoon Doksuri Forces 100,000 to Evacuate in Vietnam; Officials Warn Storm Could Be Worst in a Decade   

Sean Breslin 

Wunderground,

14 September, 2017

As many as 100,000 residents have been ordered to evacuate their homes in Vietnam ahead of Typhoon Doksuri, according to local media.

An offshore fishing ban was issued as the storm got closer to the Asian nation of 93 million, Channel News Asia said. Tens of thousands fled Ha Tinh province along the country's north-central coast, and officials said they would do anything necessary to move citizens away from the water before the storm arrived.

"(We) have to evacuate people resolutely, even forcefully ... to avoid any casualties when the storm arrives," Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung said Thursday.

(MORE: Typhoon Talim a Threat to Japan)

Doksuri has already been a deadly storm. At least four died and six others are missing in the Philippines after the typhoon dumped heavy rain and buffeted the archipelago with strong winds, according to the New York Times. After the storm struck the Philippines, dozens of flights were canceled in central Vietnam and the evacuations of residents in Ha Tinh and Quang Binh were ordered, the report added.

Authorities have told residents to expect heavy rain, flooding and landslides from the storm, according to the Bangkok Post. Doksuri is expected to make landfall Friday, the Vietnamese national weather forecast center told the Associated Press. Officials issued a category four "danger" warning – the second-highest warning level – and said the storm could be the worst to hit the country in a decade, Channel News Asia also reported.

"We have prepared sandbags to put on the roof so when the storm arrives it won't be blown off," Ha Tinh resident Nguyen Thi Que told state-controlled news site Zing.

Vietnam also put 250,000 soldiers on standby ahead of Doksuri, Channel News Asia said.

It has been a deadly year for severe weather in Vietnam; some 140 people have been killed or remain missing as a result of flooding and other extreme weather, the report added.

Meanwhile on the other side of the Pacific

Hurricane Max weakens rapidly over southern Mexico

ABCNews,

14 September, 2017

Hurricane Max slammed into Mexico's southern Pacific coast Thursday, dumping rain on an area east of the resort city of Acapulco before rapidly weakening into a tropical storm as it moved inland into Guerrero state.

The coastline where Max made landfall is sparsely populated and dotted with fishing villages.

Guerrero Gov. Hector Astudillo warned that the rains would continue all night. Near Acapulco, the government worked frantically to widen a channel to the sea to prevent a coastal lagoon from flooding.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center had earlier issued a hurricane warning for the coastline between Zihuatanejo and Punta Maldonado, and said the storm could bring "life-threatening flash floods and rainfall" to Guerrero and Oaxaca states.

The center said the rapidly weakening Max should become a tropical depression in the coming hours before dissipating early Friday.

Max had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (70 kph) and was located about 80 miles (130 kilometers) east of Acapulco Thursday night. It was heading toward the east at 7 mph (11 kph), the hurricane center reported.

Acapulco, about 30 miles (60 kilometers) from where the hurricane made landfall, was hit by strong winds and rain that blew down some branches on the city's coastal boulevard.

Also Thursday, Tropical Storm Norma formed farther out to the west in the Pacific and was expected to strengthen and head toward the resort-studded Baja California Peninsula.

Norma was located about 360 miles (580 kilometers) south of the twin resorts of Los Cabos at the peninsula's southern tip.

The storm had winds of 45 mph (75 kph) and was moving north at 6 mph (9 kph). On that track Norma could be at hurricane strength near Los Cabos by Sunday or Monday.

Los Cabos was hit by Tropical Storm Lidia in early September, causing at least five deaths.