Typhoon “Podul,” named “Yangliu” by the Chinese Meteorological Observatory, became the eleventh tropical cyclone of the Pacific season. It formed on August eighth near the Northern Mariana Islands and began moving across the Philippine Sea. On August 13th, around one o’clock in the afternoon local time, it made landfall on the coast of Taiwan as a strong typhoon.
At the time of landfall in Taitung County, its sustained winds reached about 119 miles per hour. The strongest gusts caused an aviation incident — a UPS Boeing 747-8F cargo plane, en route from Hong Kong to Taipei, struck the runway with its engine during landing at Taoyuan Airport, damaging its fuselage.
“Podul” battered the island with torrential rains: within twenty-four hours, the south received more than fifteen and three-quarters inches of precipitation, while in the mountains it reached as much as twenty-seven and a half inches. Water levels rose rapidly, flooding farmland and triggering floods and landslides. At least 7000 people were evacuated, and schools, offices, and businesses were closed. The power grid could not withstand the blow: nearly three hundred thousand homes lost electricity.
Taiwan was temporarily cut off from the outside world: more than four hundred domestic and international flights were canceled, and dozens of sea routes were suspended.
As of August 15th, one man swept away by a wave while fishing was reported missing. Another one hundred forty-three people were injured.
During the night of August fourteenth, already downgraded to a strong tropical storm, the typhoon struck the coast of China’s Fujian Province and moved inland. Despite weakening, it brought heavy rains to southeastern China. In Beihai, Guangxi Province, nearly twelve inches of rain fell within twenty-four hours.
In Guangdong, the typhoon caused major disruptions: more than 106,000 people were evacuated, ferry services were suspended, over 120 tourist sites were closed, and railways rerouted 150 trains.
A distinctive feature of Typhoon “Podul” was its unusually high speed over land: across the mainland provinces, it advanced at up to 28 miles per hour.
All these new anomalous characteristics of tropical cyclones are being recorded by specialists, and it can be stated with confidence that this is only the beginning — far more unpredictable and powerful phenomena lie ahead. Why such certainty? The answer is simple: the root cause of the escalating natural disasters lies deep within our planet. For more detailed information and to learn how events may develop in the coming years, see the video “Why Turbulence Is on the Rise? Egon Cholakian on Atmospheric Anomalies and Nanoplastic Pollution.”