Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan on Saturday, killing one person and injuring 527, downing trees and cutting power to hundreds of thousands of homes as it weakened and headed north towards the Chinese coast. At one point a super typhoon and one of the strongest storms in the Pacific this year, Champi glanced the island's north-east coast in the early hours of Saturday, with its centre looping offshore near Yilan before moving away. Taiwan's fire department said the single death was a man swept away by waves from the island of Liuqiu.

Damage across the island

Wind gusts reached 227 kilometres per hour in some coastal areas, knocking down power lines and sending roof tiles flying, while Taipei saw downed trees and squally rain. Taipower said more than 288,000 homes lost electricity at one point, though most were reconnected, and the transport ministry said 259 flights were cancelled on Saturday, an improvement on almost 1,000 on Friday. A swathe of northern and central Taiwan, including Taipei, declared a second day of office and school closures on Saturday as the storm passed.

Heading north, China on alert

The storm's forecast track shows it turning north along the Chinese coast and eventually towards southern Japan, though it was not expected to make landfall in China. China's emergency management ministry sent a team to Zhejiang province, warning of strong winds and heavy rain through Sunday, with 400 rescue workers and 600 pieces of equipment readied and more than 41,000 firefighters on emergency duty. In Taizhou, more than 3,800 fishing boats returned to harbour and over 2,000 island visitors were evacuated. Taiwan is generally well prepared for typhoons, which keeps casualties low, though storms can still strike in autumn.