Typhoon likely to side-swipe Taiwan en route to Japan

TAIPEI-A typhoon carrying gusts of more than 200 kph (120 mph) was churning towards the northern tip of Taiwan on Thursday but was expected to veer off towards Japan.Typhoon Sinlaku was located southeast of Taiwan and moving northwest at 7 kph, prompting Taiwan to issue a sea warning, the Taiwan Central Weather Bureau said on its website (www.cwb.gov.tw).The storm was packing sustained winds of up 173 kph, with gusts up to 209 kph, making it a Category 4 storm, according to the CWB and Tropical Storm Risk (www.tropicalstormrisk.com).The CWB's forecast had Sinlaku on track to graze Taiwan's northeastern tip on Sunday morning, though Tropical Storm Risk forecast a more northernly route that would cause the storm to skirt Taiwan and shift to a northeasterly track that would send it towards Okinawa and Japan's main islands.Taiwan has been hit by two major storms this year, including tropical storm Kalmaegi which pummeled the island in July, killing 18 and causing major crop damage. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTP16481920080911

As in the days of Noah...