TAIPEI — More than 146,000 households across Taiwan experienced power outages as Typhoon Champi battered the island with strong winds and heavy rainfall, leaving at least one person dead and dozens injured, local media reported Saturday.Electricity had been restored to more than 122,000 households by Friday night, while repair crews resumed operations early Saturday in parts of New Taipei and the northern port city of Keelung, where powerful gusts continued overnight, according to Focus Taiwan.Authorities deployed 15 additional repair teams from five regional offices in central and southern Taiwan to accelerate power restoration in the hardest-hit northern areas.The typhoon also disrupted air traffic Friday, while authorities ordered schools and government offices to close across most of Taiwan as a precaution.Taitung County and the outlying islands of Penghu and Matsu were exempted from the closure orders.Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration said Champi was positioned over waters east of Yilan on Saturday and was expected to weaken into a mild typhoon by the afternoon.The agency also anticipated lifting land and sea typhoon warnings by Saturday evening as the storm continued to lose strength.Rainfall shifted westward Saturday after heavy downpours affected northern and eastern Taiwan the previous day.Mountainous areas south of Hsinchu experienced heavy rainfall early Saturday, with localized torrential rain reported in parts of Miaoli.Forecasters expected rainfall to gradually ease during the afternoon, although isolated heavy downpours remained possible in areas north of Taichung.Despite the typhoon’s weakening, authorities warned that dangerous sea conditions persisted around Taiwan.Waves of 2 to 3 meters (6.6 to 9.8 feet) were recorded in surrounding waters, while waves exceeding 6 meters (19.7 feet) remained possible off the northern and northeastern coasts Saturday.
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