| ||||
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan's eighth typhoon this year has hit the south of the island but there have been no reports of damage or casualties.
Typhoon Lekima's outer winds whipped southern Taiwan on Wednesday and began dumping rain that forecasters feared would bring a new round of deadly floods and landslides.
Two major typhoons have already killed about 300 Taiwanese this summer, and more torrential rain could trigger mudslides and flooding in mountainous areas across the island.
Many Taiwanese live or farm on mountain slopes that are prone to mudslides when soaked.
| |||||||
Last week, tropical storm Nari killed more than 90 people and caused more than $84 million (T$2.91 billion) in farm losses.
Mud and boulders have already started tumbling down mountainsides and covering roads in Hualien and Ilan counties on Taiwan's eastern coast.
Residents in northern Taiwan have filled more than 20,000 sandbags to block possible flooding.
Lekima, named after a Vietnamese fruit tree, began whirling into southern Taiwan late Tuesday night, moving at 3 mph and packing winds of 74 mph.
If the typhoon keeps its current course, it could spend Wednesday and much of Thursday sweeping over southern Taiwan.
Hundreds of fishermen have strapped down their boats in Taiwanese harbors.
A Chinese freighter on Wednesday sank in rough seas in the Taiwan Strait near the outlying island of Kinmen, which was far outside of Lekima's fringe, officials said.
Eight crew members were rescued but the captain was missing in the waters close to China's southern coast, officials said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
