From correspondents in Taipei County, China, 12:30 AM IST

Typhoon Sinlaku lashed Taiwan Sunday, causing severe damage to agriculture and leaving several people missing.

Sinlaku, a powerful typhoon with twin eyes, crossed Taiwan's northern tip on its way to China's Fujian province early Sunday morning and weakened into a medium typhoon, the Central Weather Bureau said.

The storm brought strong winds and heavy rains to northeast Taiwan, paralyzing land and air traffic and cutting off power to some 300,000 homes.

The typhoon left at least 17 people injured and several missing, according to the anti-disaster centre and press reports.

In Changhwa county in west Taiwan, a power company worker repairing telegraph poles fell into flooding water, and has not yet been found.

In Fengyuan, also in western Taiwan, part of a bridge collapsed Sunday afternoon, causing a taxi and a private car to crash through a hole into the Tachia river. Some 200 policemen launched a search, but have not found the two cars and their occupants as of midnight.

According to the anti-disaster centre, at least 17 people have been injured, suffering cuts and bruises caused by fallen trees and broken windows.

The Council of Agriculture estimates that the typhoon has caused at least 114 million Taiwan dollars ($3.7 million) in agricultural damage, mostly to fruit and vegetable crops.

By 11 p.m. Sunday, the centre of Sinlaku was 100 km northwest of Keelung on Taiwan's northern tip.

Moving at seven km per hour in a northwesterly direction, the storm's centre winds were reaching 108 kph and gusts hit 137 kph.

If Sinlaku maintains its current speed and course, it is expected to cross the Taiwan Strait and land on China's Fujian coast Tuesday, the Central Weather Bureau said.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)