If this is your first summer in Taiwan, you’ll start hearing about typhoon preparedness during July through October months — Taiwan’s typhoon season.
And the first thing that longtime foreign residents and Taiwanese locals will probably tell you is: “Don’t worry — in big city Taipei, we’re usually OK.”
But while Taipei’s urban infrastructure is modern and strong (plus our many, many convenience stores everywhere…), typhoons must still be respected.
All typhoons bring extreme winds and rains when they make landfall. These winds (the wind is really the most devastating element) and rains can cause property damage and flying debris, flash flooding, fallen trees, and electricity interruptions. And the impacts are more severe if you live in or commute around the mountainsides and urban creeks of Taipei City and New Taipei city. Older homes and buildings may also be more prone to water and wind damage.
All of which interrupt your daily life — from home comforts to work commutes to school and childcare.
If you’ve lived in hurricane country like the U.S. east coast, Caribbean, Central America, or the islands of Hawai’i, typhoon preparedness will feel very similar. But if you’ve never lived with tropical storms before, here is an essential overview and typhoon checklist designed for Taipei’s international community. Bookmark and share it with friends and family!
1. Bookmark Official Taiwan Typhoon News and Download Apps
Taiwan’s Disaster Prevention e-Point
https://bear.emic.gov.tw/MY2/ (Download App iOS | Android)
For disaster-specific advice and news, use the Taiwan Ministry of the Interior’s e-Point website and smartphone app for customizable, English-language services and news updates, including official school and work closure announcements.
Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration (CWA)
https://www.cwa.gov.tw/eng/ (Download App)
Bookmark this official government for the latest typhoon track maps and Wind Speed Probability (WSP) forecasts — showing where and when winds may arrive up to 5 days in advance. You can also download the CWA’s smartphone app, which has helpful information even on non-typhoon days, like air quality reports.
ICRT – International Community Radio Taipei
FM100.7 (Hsinchu FM100.7; Taichung FM100.1; Chiayi FM100.8; Kaohsiung FM100.7)
https://www.icrt.com.tw/index.php (Download App)
Taiwan’s longtime English-language radio station provides reliable updates ahead of and during typhoons, including school and office closure notices. You can also download the ICRT app for your smartphone.
A Note on “Official Typhoon Day” Notices: In Taiwan, the government will officially designate certain dates as severe weather days. These designations affect whether schools and public offices must stay open or are allowed to close — plus labor rules on when employees do not have to report for work. However, what individual businesses set as paid or unpaid leave can wildly differ — some companies do not pay employees for typhoon days. So be sure to check your employer’s specific policy regarding typhoon days.
2. Pack Your Taiwan Typhoon Emergency Supplies
Whether for typhoons or earthquakes or other natural disasters, you can follow best practices to pack an emergency bag for when you have to evacuate, plus emergency supplies and food if must shelter in place for whatever reason.
If your home country offers a foreign traveler/resident registration service (e.g. STEP for U.S. citizens), now is a good time to update your records.
Emergency Bag
- Cash
- Originals or copies of your key documents (e.g. passport, ARC, insurance)
- Resealable waterproof bags (such as food storage bags) to help keep your documents dry
- Any prescription medication or commonly used medication
- Feminine hygiene, nursing, and elder care products, as applicable
- Toys, blanket, books, fidgets to keep children comforted, as applicable
- Power banks and phone chargers
- Printed list of family and friends contacts, account numbers, medical/insurance services numbers, work numbers, diplomatic consulate numbers
- Lists and photos of insured possessions and valuables, either printed or saved to a cloud storage
- Paper and pencil and permanent markers to write with
Emergency Supplies
- Batteries
- Flashlights
- Battery-powered FM/AM radio
- Drinking water / bottled water (plan for 72-hour supply of water, roughly 3L per person per day)
- Non-perishable food you do not have to cook or reheat
- Can opener, for canned food)
- Garbage bags (for garbage and makeshift toilets)
- Buckets and pails (for leaks, transferring water, or makeshift toilets)
- First-aid kit with additional disinfectants, wipes, masks, chlorine tablets for treating water (you can buy pre-packaged kits at many major stores)
- Don’t forget supplies for your pets, if you have them!
- High rain boots / wellies, in case you have to wade in flooded streets
- Old newspaper / paper towels / rags for cleanup
3. Preparing When a Typhoon Approaches Taiwan
How typhoon winds and rains affect any given building or neighborhood can vary greatly, so we encourage you to befriend your new neighbors, building manager, or more seasoned residents to ask advice specific to your building or neighborhood. But in general:
Home Exteriors
- Clear balconies of loose objects, like plants, furniture, clothes drying racks, which can blow away in high winds
- Remove any temporary lighting and electrical decorations
- Ask your building manager or landlord if you need to clear any roof drains, deploy window shutters, tape up windows, or sandbag entrances if you live on the ground floor
Home Interiors
- Double check your emergency bag supplies
- Lower your refrigerator temperature and freeze bottles of water (to help keep the fridge contents cool for longer, if power goes out)
- Charge batteries and powered devices
- Fill up pots and bathtubs with extra water you can use for toilet flushing and washing, in case of water stoppage or water pump outage, or to chlorinate as drinking water
Timing Your Prep
- A Week Ahead: Monitor CWA forecasts and ICRT alerts; check emergency bag and medication, and charge batteries
- Week of Landfall Estimate: Stock up on food and water; check on home interior and exterior tasks; freeze ice packs and lower refrigerator temperature; move balcony items indoors
- Day or Two Before Landfall: Fill up extra water in pots and tubs; move car to safe location; stay home if government closures announced; keep phones and power packs charged for as long as possible
4. Be Safe During the Typhoon
Again, it’s the winds and resulting damage that make typhoons most dangerous, with fallen trees, debris from broken signs and roofing, and motor scooters blown over. Flash floods can also make streets impassable and create sewage hazards. So, if a major typhoon does make landfall, please:
- Keep track of official news through CWA, e-Point, and ICRT websites and radio stations
- Stay indoors and away from unprotected windows. (You can wedge paper to prevent old windows and doors from rattling but not rigidly fixed.)
- Do not go outside if at all possible; wait until the storm clears to assess any exterior damage
- Do not walk or drive in flooded streets
Be Smart, Be Prepared for Taiwan’s Typhoons!
Hopefully, our list will help you feel more informed and confident during your first Taiwan typhoon season.
Again, be sure to download the official Taiwan government apps and bookmark these English-language websites and radio stations to stay updated on emergency information. Those emergency services news networks will also remind you on what to do and what to avoid after typhoons — such as landslide dangers on mountain roads and other precautions.
And one more bit of advice? The best preparation and safety is your community. So make new friends with your neighbors and with more seasoned foreign residents. You’ll get a better sense of how to react to weather alerts — how your immediate area is typically affected, and when to be alert when a big one really comes.
Until then, have a wonderful summer and enjoy the heat! (Which we should probably write another Taiwan Essentials article on!)