600,000 flee from Typhoon Talim

Nearly 600,000 people were evacuated as Typhoon Talim ploughed into southern China today, packing winds of up to 114mph.

Talim hit land around 4pm local time (9am Irish time) in the coastal province of Fujian, and was moving north-west at about 14mph, the Hong Kong Observatory reported.

Fujian television showed waves up to 10 metres high crashing against breakwaters in the fishing village of Ningde, about 466 miles from the commercial hub of Shanghai.

A truck carrying bushels of tomatoes was shown blown on its side, fruit spilling over the road, while cyclists sheltered from the wind behind the walls of buildings.

The report said there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage from Talim, which means sharp or cutting edge in the Tagalog language of the Philippines.

Fujian authorities issued a top-level “black alarm,” evacuating 286,000 people, ordering boats into port and placing rescue teams on standby, according to the website of the Fujian Meteorological Bureau.

Just to the north in Zhejiang province, more than 291,000 people were moved away from the coastline, rivers, ageing reservoirs, mountain villages and dilapidated housing, according to the official China News Service.

More than 29,000 ships and fishing vessels took shelter in harbours, it said.

Talim left Taiwan’s west coast this morning aftr heavy winds and rains drowned an elderly man and injured 24 other people on the island.

Damage from the storm was largely limited to fallen trees and signboards, although schools, offices and financial markets were closed in most of Taiwan today.

In Taipei, streets were abandoned as strong winds felled trees and sent debris cascading against buildings and homes.

Cable station CTI showed videos of raging river waters overwhelming a makeshift bridge in central Taiwan,erected as a replacement for a structure destroyed in an earlier typhoon. Many roads in the area were cut off because of falling rocks.

Torrential rains flooded homes in the southern town of Meinung, closing shops and businesses, and forcing residents to wade through streets with water up to their knees.