Silks Place Taroko hotel closes until Jan. 15 in typhoon aftermath

Taipei, Nov. 8 (CNA) The Silks Place Taroko hotel in Hualien County, eastern Taiwan, is temporarily closing its doors for more than two months to sort out water and power supply issues caused by Typhoon Kong-rey, which made landfall in neighboring Taitung County on Oct. 31, it said Friday.

In a statement, the only five-star hotel in the scenic Taroko National Park, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Taiwan, said it will be closed until Jan. 15, and is in the process of contacting guests who have made bookings for stays during the closure.

Damage caused by Typhoon Kong-rey made it difficult to maintain normal day-to-day operations at the hotel in Taiwan's Silks Hotel Group, according to the statement.

The property is cut off from its main water supply, and the electricity supply remains unreliable with work ongoing to fix the power grid in the mountainous area, the hotel said in a Facebook post Friday.

Kong-rey was another blow to the hotel, which has suffered from several natural disasters this year, including a magnitude 7.2 earthquake off the coast of Hualien on April 3, a series of aftershocks, and typhoons in recent months.

More than 200 people were stranded and stayed in the hotel for five days following the April 3 earthquake, while two vehicles taking hotel employees to work were hit by falling rocks and trapped in a tunnel.

The hotel closed after the earthquake in April only reopening for business on Oct. 3.

Due to the closure, the hotel has announced June 30, 2025 as the new expiry date for its 2023 vouchers, and holders of 2024 vouchers can now use them until Sept. 30, 2025, the Hualien hotel said.