Priya
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Typhoon Gaemi has hit Taiwan, causing massive disruption to normal life. Financial markets have been closed and people given leave from work due to the storm. Many flights have also been cancelled and the military has been put on stand-by amid forecasts of torrential rain and strong winds.
Gaemi, the first typhoon of the season to affect Taiwan, is expected to make landfall on the northeastern coast on Wednesday evening, according to the island's Central Meteorological Administration. Currently classified as a medium-strength typhoon, it is expected to move across the Taiwan Strait and then hit the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian late Friday afternoon.
The biggest storm ever
In rural Yilan County, where the typhoon will first make landfall, wind and rain have picked up, restaurants have closed and streets are mostly empty. This could be the biggest typhoon in recent years. Yilan's Su'ao port was reportedly packed with boats seeking shelter.
27 international flights cancelled
Work and schools have been suspended across Taiwan, with heavy rain leaving streets in the capital Taipei deserted at what is usually rush hour. The transport ministry said 27 international flights as well as nearly all domestic flights had been cancelled. However, TSMC, the world's biggest contract chipmaker and a major supplier to Apple, said it expected its factories to maintain normal production during the storm.
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