Ferries suspended, parks and riverside areas closed as typhoon nears

Taipei, Oct. 30 (CNA) Officials in Taiwan on Wednesday announced the suspension of ferry services, national park closures and the closing of Taipei-area riversides ahead of the approaching Typhoon Kong-rey.

Hehuanshan and Aowanda National Forest Recreation Areas will be closed due to safety concerns on Thursday and Friday, according to a statement issued by the Nantou Branch of the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency.

Yushan National Park also announced its closure from 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, saying its reopening time would depend on an assessment of the park's conditions after the typhoon passed.

In northern Taiwan, the Taipei City government said that from 4 p.m. Wednesday, motor vehicles will only be allowed to exit, but not enter evacuation gates and embankment ramps in riverside areas citywide.

Riverside evacuation gates will also be closed from 10 p.m., the city said.

In New Taipei, traffic in riverside areas will be limited to exiting vehicles starting at 9 p.m. Wednesday, while evacuation gates will be closed at 10 p.m., the city's Transportation Department said.

Meanwhile, direct ferry services through the "mini-three-links" between Kinmen's Shuitou Pier and China's Xiamen and Quanzhou will be suspended Thursday, the Kinmen County government's Harbor Bureau announced.

In total, 36 scheduled ferries on ten routes were canceled Wednesday due to the weather, including those between Keelung and Matsu, Kaohsiung and Penghu, Donggang and Xiaoliuqiu, and Fugang (Taitung) and Green Island, according to the Maritime Port Bureau.

As of 1 p.m. Wednesday, Typhoon Kong-rey was located about 440 kilometers southeast of Cape Eluanbi, Taiwan's southernmost tip, and was moving northwest at a speed of 19 kilometers per hour.

According to the Central Weather Administration, the outer rim of the storm is expected to reach southeastern Taiwan early Thursday, before making landfall south of Hualien sometime between Thursday noon and evening.