Typhoon Danas hits Taiwan: 2 killed, hundreds injured; international flights cancelled

Typhoon Danas slammed into Taiwan’s west coast late Sunday, killing two people and injuring nearly 500, according to the Central Weather Administration.

By early Monday, almost 400,000 households were still without power.

The storm made a rare and direct landfall in Chiayi County—marking the first time on record that a typhoon has struck the area. The agency described Danas’s path as “very unusual,” with gusts reaching up to 222 kilometers (138 miles) per hour in the island’s southwest.

Though Danas moved north and exited the island by early Monday, it left behind torrential rainfall. More than 500 millimeters (20 inches) of rain fell across southern Taiwan over the weekend, triggering widespread flooding.

Among the fatalities, a 60-year-old man died after a power outage disabled his ventilator, while a 69-year-old man was fatally struck by a falling tree while driving. At least 491 people were injured, reported AFP quoting to the National Fire Agency.

Emergency crews evacuated around 3,500 residents, primarily from mountainous regions near the southern city of Kaohsiung, due to fears of landslides and flash floods.

Air travel was also disrupted, with 33 international flights canceled on Monday as the storm’s effects lingered.

Taiwan, which routinely faces typhoons between July and October, was especially hard-hit by Danas because of its unusual trajectory and powerful winds, making it one of the most disruptive storms in recent memory.