Typhoon Megi leaves 4 dead, 268 injured in Taiwan

A woman in Taipei struggles with her umbrella against powerful winds generated by Typhoon Megi. [Photo/Agencies]

TAIPEI -- Four people were killed and 268 others were injured in Taiwan as Typhoon Megi traveled across the island on Tuesday, according to local authorities.

More than 14,000 people were evacuated due to the typhoon and more than 72,000 homes were cut off from water supplies, according to the island's Emergency Operation Center.

Packing strong winds and heavy rain, the typhoon also resulted in more than 3.1 million homes being cut off from electricity, according to Taiwan Power Co., which added that some 1.65 million households were still without power as of 7:53 pm Tuesday.

In addition to forcing schools and businesses to close, the typhoon also suspended train services and shipping lanes, according to the center.

Also on Tuesday, more than 420 flights were canceled, and a total of 446 flights were rescheduled to or from Taiwan.

The typhoon made landfall at Hualien City in the east part of the island at about 2:00 pm, with winds of up 198 km per hour, according to the island's meteorological agency, which issued land and sea warnings for the storm system.

Typhoon Megi was the third storm system to hit the island in about two weeks, following Typhoon Meranti, which left one person dead and more than 50 injured when it swept across the southern part of the island, and Typhoon Malakas. Typhoon Meranti was the most powerful typhoon this year.