At least eight people were reported to have been killed, and several others are missing in the Philippines following flooding from a typhoon and a monsoon pattern.
TAIPEI, Taiwan – After the fifth-slowest tropical cyclone season in the western Pacific, Typhoon Gaemi dealt a major blow to Taiwan.
The cyclone initially developed east of the Philippines on July 19, where it was known as Typhoon Carina.
The slow-moving nature of the cyclone, in combination with monsoonal rains, caused widespread flooding in provinces of the Philippines.
The nation’s government reported more than 800,000 people were affected by the torrential rainfall, and hundreds of shelters were established.
The cyclone never made landfall in the Southeast Asian nation but was close enough to deliver a glancing blow.
-
MANILA, PHILIPPINES – JULY 24: Residents trapped by flooding caused by Typhoon Gaemi and monsoon rains are rescued on July 24, 2024 in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines. Monsoon rains, intensified by Typhoon Gaemi, have caused flooding and landslides throughout the Philippines, resulting in at least eight deaths and displacing over 600,000 people. The typhoon, located east of Taiwan Wednesday with up to 162 kph winds, did not make landfall in the Philippines but enhanced monsoon rains. In the region around the capital Manila, government work and schools were suspended due to severe overnight flooding. (Photo by Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)
-
A resident wades through floodwaters in Manila on July 24, 2024, amid heavy rains brought by Typhoon Gaemi. Relentless rain drenched the northern Philippines on July 24, triggering flooding in Manila and landslides in mountainous regions as Typhoon Gaemi intensified the seasonal monsoon. (Photo by TED ALJIBE/AFP via Getty Images)
-
An aerial view shows Xindian river’s rising water level at New Taipei City as typhoon Gaemi passes Taiwan on July 25, 2024. (Photo by SAM YEH/AFP via Getty Images)
Once the cyclone passed the Philippines to the north and east, the system rapidly strengthened into the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane while off of Taiwan.
Typhoon Gaemi performed a loop off the coast of the island before making landfall early Thursday morning near Nan’ao on the northeast coast.
Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration said rainfall tallies quickly eclipsed a foot and there was more rainfall in the forecast.
Schools and government offices were closed across the island, and Taiwan’s defense ministry reported that it had to cancel part of a planned military exercise due to the weather.
After the fifth-slowest tropical cyclone season in the western Pacific, Typhoon Gaemi dealt a major blow to Taiwan.
(FOX Weather)
TRACKING THE TROPICS: NORTHERN HEMISPHERE FINALLY SEES ITS FIRST TROPICAL DEPRESSION
At least a dozen people were reported dead in the Philippines and Taiwan due to the impacts of the extreme weather.
Gaemi was expected to maintain typhoon status through its landfall in eastern China.
State media reported that thousands were being moved out of low-lying areas ahead of the storm’s impacts.
The FOX Forecast Center said torrential rains would likely impact some of the same provinces where deadly flooding was reported in recent weeks.
Forecast models showed that rainfall totals could approach two feet on the eastern coast between Shenzhen and Shanghai through the end of the month.
Forecast track for Typhoon Gaemi.
(Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration / FOX Weather)
WATCH: CHINESE ROCKET CATCHES FIRE AFTER ACCIDENTAL LAUNCH, CAUSING MASSIVE EXPLOSION
Gaemi was only the second typhoon of the year to form in what has been an unusually inactive season in the western Pacific.
While the Atlantic has a defined season, cyclones can form year-round in the western Pacific, with the majority of activity occurring from May through October.
Typhoon Aghon developed on May 12, marking the fifth-slowest start to any year on record.
The latest date on record for the basin’s first cyclone is June 8, observed in 1983.
In an average season, 26 storms typically form, with 16 strengthening into typhoons, but these numbers have not been reached since 2019.