Shanghai upgrades alert for typhoon Kong-rey as heavy rainfall expected

There are mud, small rocks, big rocks and driftwood -- I don't know where they came from,

a resident in Zhuoxi village told local news channel TVBS

Happy and proud that we could come out and assist your crews and give back to the Taiwanese people,

one of the firefighters told local media

When I opened the door, I saw a mudslide coming down slowly. I picked up my car key and rushed out,

Wu, 55, told AFP

Lai Ching-tepresident

We still have to remind everyone that the typhoon's periphery will still affect all parts of the country, especially people in Matsu and mountainous areas around the country, and they should pay attention to localised heavy rainfall,

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-Te wrote on his Facebook page

There are four reported cases of flooding and all have receded. There are also three reported cases of mudslides, including one near a tunnel, which we are verifying now,

an official told AFP news agency

The typhoon was so strong yesterday,

Pan Li-chu told AFP at her restaurant in Taipei, where the awning had been bent by the force of the wind

It's mostly trees falling down and crushing into electricity poles that caused a power outage,

said the official, who gave only his surname Huang

The trees over there at the elementary school were uprooted. The big banyan tree was uprooted,

she said

Lee Chia-hsinbadminton player

We started cleaning from 5:00 am till now and have only cleaned one road section. It took us about two and a half hours,

Lee Chia-hsin, a member of the New Taipei City cleaning crew, told AFP

Scoot is contacting affected customers to re-accommodate them onto alternative flights, where available. Affected customers may also request for a full refund if they choose not to continue with their travel,

said a spokesperson in response to queries from CNA

Marilou Caycobatanes Governor

It's so, so powerful and we haven't seen the extent of the damage yet because the wind outside is still so strong,

Batanes Governor Marilou Cayco told The Associated Press by cellphone before the line was cut off

We do not expect significant impact to our operations,

it said in an emailed statement

Lai Ching-tepresident

I hope that everyone in the country will cooperate in avoiding disaster and refraining from engaging in dangerous behavior such as wave watching during the typhoon,

President Lai Ching-te wrote on his Facebook page

It was terrifying last night. Many people on the island didn’t sleep, worrying about something happening to their house,

Sinan Rapongan, a government official on Lanyu, also known as Orchid Island, told Reuters

The size of the storm is very large and the winds are high,

said CWA forecaster Gene Huang

Its impact on the entire Taiwan will be quite severe,

Chu Mei-lin, of the country’s Central Weather Administration, told a briefing

With the typhoon approaching, we should beware of the strong winds near the centre,

Chu Mei-lin from the state weather forecaster, Central Weather Administration, told a briefing

We urge everyone to make preparations accordingly,

Chu warned

As the typhoon continues to move towards the northwest, almost the whole of Taiwan will be covered by the storm circle later tonight,

meteorologist Chu Mei-lin, with the island’s weather agency, said in a press conference on Wednesday morning

We are also handling incidents of falling signboards hitting people and fallen trees on the roads,

Wang told AFP