Agricultural losses from typhoon in Taiwan $18.7 million
Staff Writer |
Estimated losses caused by Typhoon Meranti, which battered southern Taiwan, reached NT$593.41 million ($18.7 million), according to the Council of Agriculture (COA).
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The impact of the typhoon on the island was at its worst on Wednesday, leaving 1 person dead and an additional 51 injured, and forcing schools and government offices in several cities and counties in southern Taiwan to close, as the storm moved through the Bashi Channel south of Taiwan.
As for the agricultural losses, the council said, Kaohsiung, the second-largest city in Taiwan, bore the brunt, with losses hitting NT$460.14 million, accounting for 78 percent of the total, the COA statistics show.
Pingtung came in second, with losses totaling NT$78.92 million, making up 13 percent of the total, ahead of Taitung with NT$20.65 million (3 percent) and Tainan with NT$10.99 (2 percent). Outlying Kinmen was hit with estimated losses of NT$10 million in agricultural losses, about 2 percent of the total, COA said.
According to the council, crop losses islandwide totaled NT$530.54 million, with the remaining losses mainly coming from damaged agricultural facilities, at NT$44.46 million.
In terms of individual agricultural items, guava growers suffered the heaviest losses, with 1,590 hectares damaged, at a cost of NT$245.67 million, COA data show. Growers of dates, banana, wax apple (jambu), tomatoes and sorghum also suffered heavy losses, the statistics indicate.
The livestock sector faced NT$1.04 million in damages, largely due to losses in chickens, ducks and pigs, while the fishery sector suffered NT$3.07 million in losses when grouper farms were damaged, the council said. ■
A low pressure wave forming along a cold front will track across the New England coast this morning, bringing a period of rain, heavy at times for much of New England, especially for Maine today.