Southern Taiwan has been hit by floods as a southwesterly airstream brings torrential downpours to the area.
On Saturday, the Central Weather Bureau issued an advisory for “extremely heavy rain” covering areas including the southern cities of Tainan and Kaohsiung. Meanwhile, the bureau also issued a torrential rain advisory for Pingtung County, the southernmost county in Taiwan. The county reported 300mm of rain fell between Friday and noon Saturday.
A bridge in Pingtung County has been destroyed after heavy rain triggered a landslide. No injuries were reported, but the bridge’s destruction has cut off access to a village of around 100 people.
The government has appointed Cabinet Secretary-General Chen Mei-ling as the coordinator between ministries working to deal with the flooding.
The Central Weather Bureau has called on residents of southern Taiwan to avoid mountainous areas and rivers. The bureau also predicts the wet weather system will move northward on Saturday, bringing the possibility of rain to the rest of Taiwan.