Schools, offices closed in 6 cities and counties across Taiwan Tuesday

Taipei, Sept. 30 (CNA) Six cities and counties around Taiwan have announced school and office closures on Tuesday as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued the latest sea and land alerts for Typhoon Krathon at 8:30 p.m.

As of 8:15 p.m., authorities in Chiayi County, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Pingtung County in southern Taiwan, and Hualien and Taitung counties in eastern Taiwan had announced that schools and offices would be closed Tuesday, while students and workers in other regions will not be affected.

One of the exceptions is Fo Guang University in Yilan County in the northeastern region of the island, where students will have no classes on Tuesday.

Krathon, the first typhoon to hit Taiwan since Gaemi in late July, prompted Pingtung and Taitung authorities to announce at 6 p.m. Monday the closure of schools and offices Tuesday.

In addition, the Kinmen Harbor Bureau announced the closure of the Shuitou-Wutong ferry route to Xiamen, China, and the Shuitou-Shijing route to Quanzhou, China.

According to the CWA website, the center of Krathon was located over waters about 160 kilometers south-southwest of Pingtung's Cape Eluanbi, Taiwan's southernmost tip.

As of 8 p.m., the storm was moving in a west-northwesterly direction at 6 kilometers per hour while taking a turn toward the north-northwest, packing maximum sustained winds of 173 kph, with gusts of up to 209 kph, the data showed.

It is likely to make landfall in southern Taiwan around the Kaohsiung-Pingtung area on Wednesday before moving back out to sea from Yilan County, the CWA said.

Taiwan is expected to receive the brunt of Krathon on Tuesday and Wednesday, the CWA said, adding that mountainous areas in Taitung County could see torrential rain, and that extremely heavy rain may occur in Yilan, Hualien, and Taitung counties, the Hengchun Peninsula, Kaohsiung, and mountainous areas in Pingtung.

For the latest information on work and class cancellations this evening and on Tuesday, please visit the government website.