Aug. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Authorities in Taiwan shut the financial markets, offices and schools as the island braced for Typhoon Morakot. Over 70,000 people experienced power failure.

The Central Weather Bureau forecast the storm to make landfall in northeastern Taiwan at about midnight local time or later, after its outer bands lashed the island with rain late yesterday.

President Ma Ying-jeou ordered emergency services to prepare for the storm’s arrival. Previous typhoons have brought floods and deaths.

No fatalities or serious injuries have been reported, Liang Yu-chu, a spokesman at the National Fire Administration said by telephone. More than 2,000 residents of mountainous regions have been evacuated, floodgates ordered closed and water pumps put on standby, the agency said in a report.

All domestic flights, trains and high speed rail services have been halted, Jason Jen, a spokesman for the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, said by telephone. Over 200 international flights were canceled or delayed, according to data from the Taoyuan International Airport web site.

Morakot, which means emerald in Thai, has sustained winds of 144 kilometers (89 miles) per hour, gusting to 180 kph as of 5 p.m. local time, the bureau said on its Web site. The eye was 90 kilometers east-southeast off the coast of the eastern city of I-lan, and heading north-northwest at 11 kph, it said.

Businesses, Schools Closed

The Taiwan Stock Exchange, the island’s largest, didn’t open today, spokesman Wen Li-chung said by telephone. Trading in the foreign exchange market was halted also, according to the Taipei Forex Inc. Businesses and schools in 24 of Taiwan’s 25 administrative regions were closed, the Central Personnel Administration said on its Web site.

As of noon, 192,774 people experienced power disruptions, Taiwan Power Co., the island’s biggest power generator, said in a statement on its Web site. Supply was restored in some areas and 71,310 people remained without power, the company said.

While Taiwan is bracing for possible damage from the typhoon, the heavy rains may also help relieve a water shortage on the island, Ma’s office said in a statement.

The northern and eastern region experienced the most rainfall, with 692 millimeters (27.2 inches) falling in Chiayi county, Lin Hsiu-wen, deputy director of the weather bureau, said today. Morakot, with a radius of 250 kilometers, is expected to bring rainfall of up to 1,200 millimeters in some areas including Chiayi country, Lin said.

Water Supplies

Vice Economics Minister Hwang Jung-Chiou told reporters three days ago Taiwan may have to cut water supplies to swimming pools due to low rainfall, as the El Nino weather phenomenon, which can cause drought, develops in the region.

More than 20,000 people were evacuated in the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian where Morakot is forecast to make landfall tomorrow, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. About 34,000 vessels were recalled to port and waves of up to six meters are hitting the coast, according to the report.

The provincial government sent 8.4 million mobile phone text messages to warn people about the typhoon and ordered all schools and tourist attractions to close by 4 p.m. today as the typhoon approaches, Xinhua said

Japan yesterday issued alerts for high waves in Okinawa and other southern islands as the storm approached.

To contact the reporters on this story: Tim Culpan in Taipei at tculpan1@bloomberg.net; Janet Ong in Taipei at jong3@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 7, 2009 06:28 EDT