Kinmen: Ferries and a military aircraft were deployed to assist stranded travelers in Kinmen County after Typhoon Podul caused flight disruptions, leaving hundreds of passengers stuck at the airport and unable to reach Taiwan.
According to Focus Taiwan, the flight cancellations began on Wednesday and lasted for a day and a half, affecting all commercial air traffic to Kinmen County. The county is situated just a few kilometers off the southeastern coast of China near the city of Xiamen. In response to the disruptions, Kinmen Airport arranged five additional flights on Thursday afternoon and evening to transport 350 passengers to Taipei. However, by Friday morning, 200 passengers were still awaiting standby seats.
To alleviate the situation, the military provided an aircraft on Friday at noon, enabling 70 passengers to fly to Kaohsiung. Additionally, the Maritime and Port Bureau organized sea routes for approximately 100 travelers heading to the outlying Penghu County and Chiayi County. The bureau reported that a ship, Yunbao, left Kinmen at 2 p.m. for Penghu, where passengers could transfer to another vessel, Lanqu, bound for Chiayi County in southern Taiwan.