Taiwan prepares as weakening typhoon approaches

Fishermen and restaurant owners in Taiwan prepared for typhoonChanthuon Saturday, tying up ships in the Harbour and preparing to close shop/

Chanthuwas downgraded to a medium typhoon on Saturday by Taiwan's weather authorities, who said that while it would bring heavy rain and gusting winds to most of the island it was unlikely to make direct landfall.

Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau said the storm, which was at one point categorised a super typhoon, was losing strength as it headed up the Bashi Channel that separates Taiwan from the Philippines.

It forecastChanthuwould skirt Taiwan's sparsely populated and mountainous east coast on Saturday night and into Sunday (September 12) morning, then head towards China's Zhejiang province and Shanghai.

Taiwanese airlines cancelled their Saturday afternoon domestic flights, though there was only limited impact on international services. The government has ordered disaster preparations in case of landslides or flooding.