The eye of Tropical Storm Bailu spent only three hours over Taiwan but the rain fell for more than 48 hours. There was some wind damage in the form of flattened young banana palms but the rain was always the major threat.
A 19-year-old motorist in Tainan died from injuries caused by fallen trees uprooted in strong winds late on Saturday, Taiwan News media outlet reported.
At least 30 planes failed to land in Taiwan on Saturday night due to gusts from the storm, diverting to Hong Kong or the Ryukyu Islands. An estimated 5,000 passengers were affected.
The worst-hit areas were the mountains in the southeast, in the counties of Taitung and Hualien. The heaviest reported rainfall was 757 millimetres in the mountain Township of Shingen, Taitung County.
Liushidan Mountain in Hualien County, a location usually drawing many sightseers for its orange daylily blossoms, caught 607mm - 14 people were stuck on the mountain for a while after the road down was made impassable by mudslides.
Bailu became a mass of thunderstorms bringing torrential rain to the Chinese mainland, mainly in Fujian and Guangdong although Hong Kong is on the edge of the flood risk area. Nevertheless, 150 to 300mm of rain seems likely to fall inland in Guangdong.
