Hualien: Fourteen people are dead and 129 are missing in a popular tourist region of Taiwan after a barrier lake burst its banks and swallowed a town during one of the worst typhoons to hit Asia in years.

Taiwan has been lashed since Monday by the outer rim of Super Typhoon Ragasa, which is now hitting China’s southern coast after also hitting the Asian financial hub of Hong Kong, where fierce winds woke residents and waves taller than lamp posts crashed over the city’s promenades.

In Hualien, one of Taiwan’s top tourism drawcards known for its natural beauty, a barrier lake burst its banks on Tuesday afternoon to send a wall of water into the township of Guangfu, turning roads into churning rivers that carried vehicles and furniture away.

The water hit like a “tsunami”, Guangfu postma

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