Eight of Taiwan’s southern and eastern regional governments decided to shut down schools and offices because of typhoon Podul, which is expected to reach the island on Wednesday, bringing heavy rain and damaging wind gusts.
The typhoon was 460 kilometers (286 miles) southeast of Taitung City, packing top sustained winds of 126 kilometers an hour as of 7 p.m., according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration. The relatively compact system is set to strengthen and expand its wind field slightly as it moves toward land, the agency added.
Local governments including Kaohsiung, Tainan, and six other