Taiwan Evacuates Thousands as Typhoon Approaches

Taiwan has evacuated thousands of residents and closed schools and government offices as Typhoon Bavi approaches the island, with forecasters warning it could become the strongest storm to hit Taiwan since 1995.

The typhoon, which previously swept across islands in the Pacific, is expected to strike northern and eastern Taiwan on Friday and Saturday before moving towards southern Japan and later China.

Residents in the northern coastal city of Keelung have been stockpiling food, taping windows and placing sandbags outside shops in line with official safety guidance.

After causing widespread destruction in Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands as a super typhoon, Bavi has since been downgraded to a typhoon.

Taiwan's Central Weather Administration said the storm is currently packing sustained winds of 198 km/h and described it as the most powerful typhoon expected to affect the island since 1995.

More than 1,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, including almost all residents of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan, where authorities are closely monitoring two mountain reservoirs.

The government has suspended classes and work on Friday across eight cities and counties in northern and eastern Taiwan, including the capital, Taipei.