Typhoon Champi cancels 977 flights in Taiwan as rain, power cuts and coastal damage mount

Typhoon Champi disrupted travel and daily life across Taiwan on Friday even though its center had not made landfall. Aviation officials counted 977 canceled flights from Thursday through 10 a.m. Friday, while ferry operators suspended 96 sailings. Rain, heavy surf and wind damaged roads and power lines. The human toll was still provisional: the Central Emergency Operation Center reported one death and 163 injuries in figures current to 1:30 p.m. local time.

The flight total includes 262 domestic services and 715 international or cross-strait services. It does not, by itself, account for departures scheduled later in the day. Taoyuan International Airport, Taiwan's main international gateway, reported 596 cancellations between midnight and 9 a.m.: 521 passenger flights and 75 cargo flights. Those are different snapshots of the same disruption and should not be added together.

Airlines changed long-haul schedules as well. EVA Air canceled its remaining Friday flights between Taiwan and Europe or the United States. Starlux said it would operate only long-haul flights to those markets and other destinations. The airport urged travelers to check directly with their airline because arrival and departure times could change even where a flight had not been canceled.

The danger extended well beyond the typhoon's center

At 9 a.m., Taiwan's Central Weather Administration placed Champi about 320 kilometers east-southeast of Eluanbi, at the island's southern tip. It recorded maximum sustained winds of 155 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 191 kilometers per hour, with an area of influence extending about 320 kilometers from the center. That size allowed the storm's rainbands to reach much of Taiwan while its center remained at sea.

Forecasters expected the heaviest rain from Friday into Saturday morning, especially in the mountains of Yilan, where exceptionally intense rainfall was possible. Their forecast put the eye northeast of Taiwan late Friday, slowing and gradually turning north. A forecast track is not a confirmed landfall; the storm's position and the areas at risk can change with each advisory.

On the east coast, six-meter waves swept a large crane into the sea at Fugang fishing harbor in Taitung, according to Taiwan's Central News Agency. Waves of up to eight meters were recorded in Changbin, where water reached roads and overturned three rafts. The damage shows why a typhoon can be dangerous while its center is still offshore: destructive surf and rain often arrive well before the strongest winds.

Water also eroded part of Provincial Highway 9 near Duoliang, prompting emergency barriers and partial closures as authorities monitored the ground. New Taipei planned to evacuate 1,397 residents from landslide-prone areas. In two Yilan townships, about 350 people were moved as a precaution. These local operations are separate from an earlier nationwide evacuation figure released by the government.

Thousands of homes without power; ferries disrupted

Taiwan Power said 102,419 households had experienced outages by 4 p.m. Service had been restored to 77,181 of them, while 25,238 remained without electricity. The figures could change as crews repaired lines and discovered additional faults.

The transport disruption extended beyond aviation. Nine ferry routes were fully suspended, including services from Keelung to Matsu and from the east coast to Green Island and Lanyu. A tenth route, between Kinmen and Wutong, ran only a partial service. Port officials counted 96 canceled sailings overall. For smaller islands, losing ferry connections affects freight and essential services as well as passengers.

The casualty figures also require their timestamps. A person died after being swept away by waves on Thursday in Liuqiu, according to authorities cited by local media. The 163 injuries come from the official 1:30 p.m. update, an increase of 69 from the morning's provisional count. Treating either snapshot as a final toll would give readers a misleading picture.

Japan watches Champi's course as Taiwan faces a wet weekend

The Japan Meteorological Agency still classified Champi as a large typhoon in its Friday analysis. Its forecast showed a later turn north and then northeast toward waters near Japan. That is a projected path, not a declaration that the storm's center will pass through a particular city. Flights were already being canceled and power supplies disrupted on Japan's southwestern islands, according to the Associated Press.

Taiwan now faces two different timetables: safe reopening of airports and ports, and the rainfall that may continue even after the eye begins to move away. Travelers need the latest airline, ferry and weather updates before setting out. In mountain and coastal communities, persistent rain and surf may matter more than the distance to the typhoon's center.