Tens of thousands of homes lost power across Taiwan on Wednesday as Super Typhoon Meranti hit the island, a storm seen as the strongest in the world so far this year, forcing schools and businesses to close and flights to be cancelled. Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau warned that the Category 5 storm would threaten several southern and eastern cities, including Kaohsiung and Hualien, with strong winds, torrential rain and flooding. "There's only been one other tropical system in modern history that was able to get to a strength of over 110 mph (180kph) and sustain that for over 24 hours," CNN meteorologist Tom Sater said. TAIPEI: Parts of Taiwan were brought to a standstill Wednesday as the strongest typhoon of the year skirted past the island’s southern tip, knocking out power for more than 180,000 households. ‘Its impact on Taiwan will peak all day today.’

 Companies and schools in Kaohsiung and other cities have closed and almost 1,500 residents have been evacuated, the Central Emergency Operation Center said in a statement. School and work were cancelled for most eastern and southern counties, and the typhoon has knocked out power for more than 300,000 households. There are severe travel disruptions for the Mid-Autumn Festival long weekend which starts Thursday, as over 300 domestic and international flights have been cancelled and trains running along the east coast have been halted. Meranti is expected to make landfall in the southern Chinese provinces of Guangdong and Fujian on Thursday, where authorities were already cancelling train services and preparing to evacuate people, state media said.
Typhoon Meranti hits southern Taiwan with record breaking winds and heavy rains, disrupting transport and knocking out power to tens of thousands of people.