Taiwan: Typhoon kills two, causes major power loss

BEIJING

A typhoon killed two people and injured more than 300 as it tore across Taiwan overnight.

Taiwan's Central News Agency reported Tuesday that six people -- who were out hiking in the mountains -- also remain missing.

Typhoon Dujuan left large swathes of the country without electricity, with around 540,000 households still without power, the news agency said.

Taiwan Power Company announced that it was already beginning to restore power after the storm initially left nearly 2 million households without electricity.

The country's Central Emergency Operation Center reportedly stated that six hikers climbing Mount Houlien on Sept. 25, have not been heard of since, after being scheduled to return Sept. 30.

The Central Weather Bureau stated that by Tuesday morning at 8 a.m., the typhoon was moving towards the northwest of the country at a speed of 18 kilometers per hour (11.2 miles per hour).

Typhoon Dujuan's radius is 200 km and its maximum sustained winds were estimated at 144 kph.

Storm gusts reached 243.7 kph, making it the second-highest on record since Taiwan's weather station was established 34 years ago.

*Anadolu Agency correspondent Satuk Bugra Kutlugun contributed to this story from Ankara.