Taiwan braces for Typhoon Tembin's return
Island's residents in fear as Tembin heads back, while Bolaven threatens mainland
Taiwan was bracing for the likely return of Typhoon Tembin early today. Forecasts suggested it might hit the same area where only days ago it unleashed the worst rains in over a century.
Meanwhile, the mainland is also preparing for the landfall of Typhoon Bolaven, which could come as early as today.
It is rare in Taiwan for a typhoon to return and make a second landfall, happening roughly once in a decade, and local residents were anxious as they prepared for the eventuality.
"We've already been hit by the worst flooding in a century," said Tsai Chun-fang, an official from the township of Hengchun, which saw more than 600mm of rainfall within a 24-hour span late last week.
"We're really worried that the typhoon might return, because we haven't fully recovered yet."
Hundreds of soldiers were dispatched over the weekend to Hengchun, at the southernmost tip of the island, to help people clean up their homes after Tembin forced more than 8,000 people to evacuate.