Typhoon kills one in Taiwan

TAIPEI - A typhoon has killed at least one person and injured 24 in Taiwan as it toppled billboards, broke windows and knocked motorcyclists off their bikes.

Schools, businesses, government offices and financial markets all closed as the eye of Typhoon Talim headed northwest across the top of the island from near the eastern coastal city of Hualien, the Central Weather Bureau said.

The National Fire Administration's disaster response centre said one man in south Taiwan drowned in a fish pond on Wednesday after losing his footing.

The weather bureau warned people to avoid mountainous regions and rivers prone to flash floods and mudslides.

Talim had weakened to gusts of up to 180 km by 11am NZT from 227 km. The storm is forecast to tear through northern Taiwan on Thursday and hit southeast China near Fuzhou in Fujian province within hours of crossing the island.

In China, forecasters had urged local authorities to batten down and many people had already been evacuated form coastal areas, the China Daily said.

Typhoons frequently menace Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Hong Kong and southern China during the storm season that lasts from early in the northern summer to late autumn. Typhoon Haitang killed 12 people in July, with three still listed as missing.

In 2001, one of Taiwan's deadliest years for storms, Typhoon Toraji killed 200 people. A few months later, Typhoon Nari caused Taipei's worst flooding on record and killed 100.

- REUTERS