TAITUNG, Taiwan: Taiwan canceled flights and closed schools in parts of its southern region on Wednesday ahead of Typhoon Koinu’s expected landfall, the second major storm to make a direct hit on the island in a month.
Taiwan experiences frequent tropical storms from May to November but last month’s Typhoon Haikui was the first to slam into it in four years – unleashing torrential rains, high winds and forcing nearly 8,000 people to evacuate from their homes.
Experts say climate change has made the paths of tropical storms harder to forecast while increasing their intensity, which leads to more rains and flash floods.
Ahead of Thursday’s expected typhoon, more than 100 international and domestic flights have been canceled, while ferry services to Taiwan’s outlying islands have also been halted.
More than 200 people were evacuated for fear of landslides in the south of the island, and waves lashing the coast could reach up to seven meters (22 feet) high, authorities said.
Fishing boats were crammed into a fishing harbor in Pingtung county on Wednesday to shelter ahead of the typhoon, while primary schools in the agricultural region of Taitung allowed children to go home early.
“It’s barely a month, and we have another typhoon,” 65-year-old Yang Pi-cheng lamented said, as she waited to pick up her grandchildren from Dawang Primary School.
A major highway along the coast has also been closed as a precaution.
Koinu – which has been charting a jagged course for Taiwan’s southern tip – is currently just 200 kilometers (125 miles) east of the island, moving toward it at 10 kilometers per hour.
The typhoon has already brought heavy rains to the mountainous northeast regions of Yilan and New Taipei City.
“We forecast that its center will pass through the Hengchun Peninsula at the southern tip of Taiwan tomorrow morning,” said Lu Kuo-chen, head of Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration.
After making landfall in Taiwan, Typhoon Koinu is forecast to move toward the eastern coast of China’s Guangdong province, said the weather observatory in nearby Hong Kong.
The Chinese territory – which last month was skirted by another typhoon before being flooded by the heaviest rainfall in 140 years days later – will issue its lowest typhoon signal on Wednesday evening.
Taiwan cancels flights, shuts schools ahead of typhoon
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Taiwan cancels flights, shuts schools ahead of typhoon
- Taiwan experiences frequent tropical storms from May to November but last month’s Typhoon Haikui was the first to slam into it in four years
Pro-Greenland protesters mock Trump’s MAGA slogan with ‘Make America Go Away’ caps
- European governments are rallying behind Denmark, citing the need to defend Arctic regions and warning that threats against Greenland undermine Western security
COPENHAGEN, Denmark: Red baseball caps spoofing Donald Trump’s iconic MAGA hats have become a symbol of Danish and Greenlandic defiance against the US president’s threat to seize the frozen territory.
The caps reading “Make America Go Away” — parodying Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan — have gained popularity along with several variants on social media and at public protests, including a weekend demonstration held in freezing weather in the Danish capital.
European governments are rallying behind Denmark, citing the need to defend Arctic regions and warning that threats against Greenland undermine Western security.
Protesters, however, are less diplomatic.
“I want to show my support to Greenland and also show that I don’t like the president of the United States,” said 76-year-old Copenhagen resident Lars Hermansen, who wore one of the red caps at a protest Saturday.
The mock hats were created by Copenhagen vintage clothing store owner Jesper Rabe Tonnesen. Early batches flopped last year — until the Trump administration recently escalated its rhetoric over Greenland. Now there are popping up everywhere.
“When a delegation from America went up to Greenland, we started to realize this probably wasn’t a joke — it’s not reality TV, it’s actually reality,” said Tonnesen, 58. “So I said, OK, what can I do?” Can I communicate in a funny way with a good message and unite the Danes to show that Danish people support the people of Greenland?”
Demand suddenly surged from a trickle to selling out in the space of one weekend. Tonnesen said he has now ordered “several thousand.”
The original version designed by Tonnesen featured a play on words: “Nu det NUUK!” — a twist on the Danish phrase “Nu det nok,” meaning “Now it’s enough,” substituting Nuuk, Greenland’s tiny capital.
Protesters at Saturday’s rally waved red-and-white Danish and Greenlandic flags and carried handmade signs mocking US claims over the territory, which is slightly larger than Saudi Arabia.
“No Means No,” read one sign. Another declared, “Make America Smart Again.”
Wearing one of the spoof hats, protester Kristian Boye, 49, said the gathering in front of Copenhagen City Hall struck a lighthearted tone while delivering a serious message.
“I’m here to support the Greenlanders, who are going through a very hard time right now,” he said. “They are being threatened with having their country invaded. I think it’s totally unacceptable.”
