Taiwan authorities are warning residents on the east coast to prepare for the impacts of super typhoon Kong-rey, which rapidly intensified as it headed toward the island after hitting the Philippines.

Kong-rey, moving northwest over the Philippine Sea, reached supertyphoon strength on Wednesday, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC). With winds of 240 kilometers per hour (150 miles per hour), it is the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane in the Atlantic.

The powerful typhoon is expected to make landfall early Thursday (Wednesday evening ET) in Taitung, a sparsely populated county on Taiwan’s mountainous southeastern coast.

“As the typhoon continues to move northwest, almost all of Taiwan will be covered by the circle of storms later tonight,” said meteorologist Chu Mei-lin of the island’s meteorological agency. , during a press conference Wednesday morning.

The Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued a marine warning Tuesday as the storm approached. On Wednesday, it also issued a land warning for two southern counties expected to be affected by the storm’s outer bands.

Forecasts show the powerful storm could weaken slightly before making landfall directly on its southeast coast, but it is still expected to unleash intense downpours, causing flash flooding, storm surge and the risk of landslides .

“We urge everyone to prepare accordingly,” warned Chu.

Chu added that waves could reach up to eight meters high when the typhoon makes landfall. Heavy rains will also be expected on Thursday in Taiwan, particularly in Taipei.

Taiwan’s military has placed around 36,000 troops on standby to participate in rescue and relief operations, according to the Ministry of National Defense.

More than 6,000 first responders were also put on standby to assist in response to the typhoon, according to the Central Emergency Operations Center. Most flights and ferries across Taiwan are operating as usual so far, the center said Wednesday.

Taiwan generally has a strong track record in responding to major typhoons, although isolated villages in more mountainous regions can be particularly vulnerable to landslides. Earlier this month, Typhoon Krathon killed four people as it brought particularly heavy rains to the south of the island.

Two outlying islands of Taiwan, Green Island and Orchid Island, suspended work and classes on Wednesday, according to the county government.

In recent days, northern parts of the Philippines’ main island Luzon have been hit by the outer bands of Kong-rey, known locally as Leon, as authorities ordered evacuations and warned of its impacts after having already seen the devastation last week of Tropical Storm Tramiknown as Kristine, who killed at least 130 people.

As of Wednesday morning, Kong-rey continued to circle the north of the island as it headed toward Taiwan.

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