The New Nation - Internet Edition

Reuters, Taipei

A typhoon dumped up to 700 mm (28 ins) of rain on Taiwan on Monday, killing one person, injuring five, causing widespread flooding and closing businesses and financial markets.

Typhoon Fung-Wong, Chinese for phoenix, was expected to weaken into a tropical storm over the next 24 hours after it makes landfall in China.

In the Chinese provinces of Fujian and Zhejiang, authorities evacuated more than 340,000 people and called back 12,875 fishing boats. Ferry services between China and Taiwan were suspended.

At 0800 GMT, Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau had the storm moving northwest at 20 kph in the Taiwan Strait, with sustained winds of 119 kph and gusts of up to 155 kph, according to the CWB's Website (http://www.cwb.gov.tw).

The storm also prompted the issue of rough sea warnings and disrupted land and air traffic, leading to the suspension of most domestic rail service and cancellation of most domestic and some international flights into early Monday afternoon.

Tropical Storm Risk (http://www.tropicalstormrisk.com) said the typhoon would likely be downgraded to a tropical storm over the next day.

Fung-Wong is the second typhoon to hit Taiwan in the last two weeks. On July 18, typhoon Kalmaegi killed at least 20 people and caused extensive flooding, landslides and crop damage in the south and central part of the island.