Typhoon Haitang batters Taiwan as China put on alert

Authorities in south-eastern China put 800,000 people in temporary shelters as Typhoon Haitang churned toward the coast today with fierce rains and high winds after hammering northern Taiwan and leaving three people dead.

Falling rocks killed one man in south-eastern Taiwan, two women drowned in the north of the island, and a fisherman was missing. Dozens were injured, mostly by falling trees and signboards, as swollen rivers pounded bridges and knocked away roads.