Taiwan alerts coastal areas as approaching Typhoon Champi grounds flights

Authorities in Taiwan announced a land warning on Thursday as Typhoon Champi advanced toward the island's northeastern waters, prompting flight cancellations and coastal safety alerts.

Although the storm slightly diminished in strength after previously reaching super typhoon intensity, it remained formidable. According to Taiwan's Central Weather Administration, Champi generated gusts exceeding 227 kilometers per hour near its center. The weather agency placed the system roughly 250 kilometers southeast of Yilan County.

Projections indicate the typhoon will skirt Taiwan's northeastern corner, with its closest approach expected late Friday. From there, forecasters anticipate the system will pivot north toward waters off eastern China and eventually track toward southern Japan. The storm's wind field broadened to a radius of 320 kilometers, spanning a substantial portion of Taiwan, with meteorologists projecting adverse conditions to persist across the region for nearly two days.

Heavy precipitation poses a major concern across northern high-elevation terrain, including mountainous zones surrounding Taipei, where total rainfall could approach one meter. Authorities sent emergency alerts to coastal settlements warning of ocean swells topping six meters.

Transport networks began scaling back operations ahead of the storm's arrival. Taiwan's transport ministry confirmed the cancellation of 125 flights on Thursday, primarily on domestic routes, though train services continued to run without immediate disruption. Taiwan's interior ministry stated that no resident evacuations had been registered as of Thursday.

Neighboring Japan has also braced for the storm's trajectory, which is projected to pass over the westernmost inhabited island of Yonaguni in Okinawa Prefecture. Major Japanese airlines, including ANA, Japan Airlines, and Skymark, grounded more than 100 flights scheduled between Thursday and Sunday, affecting travel plans for upwards of 11,000 customers.

Severe tropical storms in the region occur most frequently during the summer, but autumn systems can still generate intense winds and damaging rainfall across East Asia.