More rain falls in Taiwan after tropical depression causes flooding

Taiwan continued to face severe weather conditions on Thursday as a tropical depression brought more heavy rainfall to parts of the island, heightening the risk of flooding and landslides in affected regions.

The storm, which made landfall in southern Pingtung County on Wednesday evening, has already injured 95 people across Taiwan. Local authorities had taken preemptive measures by evacuating more than 8,500 residents from vulnerable coastal and mountainous areas as Fung-wong approached the island.

By Thursday, the depression was generating sustained winds of 54 kilometers per hour (34 mph) near its center with even stronger gusts. The northern coastal areas around Yilan have been particularly hard hit, receiving more than 1.065 meters (42 inches) of rainfall since Monday—an extraordinary amount that has overwhelmed local drainage systems and raised concerns about structural damage.

Weather officials warned that heavy precipitation would likely continue through Thursday, especially in the northeastern port city of Keelung and around Taipei, the capital. Authorities issued urgent advisories about potential flooding and landslides in mountainous regions, where saturated soil increases the risk of terrain collapse. Residents were also cautioned to be alert for flying debris and loose objects from buildings that could pose safety hazards during wind gusts.

After two days of closures in some areas, schools and offices across the island reopened on Thursday, signaling a gradual return to normal activities despite the ongoing weather challenges.

The eastern part of Taiwan bore some of the storm’s most severe impacts. Mingli Village in Hualien County experienced significant flooding after a local creek overflowed its banks, inundating homes and businesses. The flooding also forced authorities to close a section of highway in the area, disrupting transportation networks crucial for emergency response and recovery efforts.

Fung-wong’s impact on Taiwan represents the latest chapter in the storm’s destructive path across the Western Pacific. Before reaching Taiwan, it had made landfall in the Philippines as a super typhoon, where it triggered devastating floods and landslides that claimed at least 27 lives. The system lost considerable strength and speed as it moved northwestward toward Taiwan, downgrading from typhoon to tropical depression status.

Taiwan, situated in one of the world’s most active typhoon regions, typically experiences several tropical cyclones each year during the storm season that runs from June to November. The island’s mountainous topography can intensify rainfall effects, as moist air is forced upward, creating what meteorologists call orographic enhancement of precipitation.

Climate experts have noted that warming ocean temperatures in recent years may be contributing to more intense precipitation events during tropical systems, even when wind speeds do not reach extreme levels. This phenomenon poses particular challenges for Taiwan’s disaster management systems, which must increasingly prepare for record-breaking rainfall rather than just high winds.

The Central Weather Bureau of Taiwan continues to monitor the system as it moves away from the island, though residual moisture and unstable atmospheric conditions could sustain rainfall for several more days in some areas. Recovery efforts are already underway in the hardest-hit communities, with emergency services prioritizing restoration of utilities and clearing of blocked roadways.

Local governments across Taiwan are now conducting damage assessments that will determine the scale of reconstruction needs and potential requests for national disaster relief funding.