Typhoon Champi in Taipei: What's Open This Long Weekend and What to Do About Storm Damage at Home

The short answer

*Updated Saturday, October 24, 2026, 11:30 am Taiwan time. We will update this post when the warnings are lifted.*

Typhoon Champi brushed past Taiwan's northeast coast overnight without a direct landfall, and the worst is behind Taipei. Today, Saturday October 24, is still a typhoon day in Taipei, New Taipei, Keelung, Taoyuan and nine other cities and counties, so work and classes are off. The Taipei MRT is running on a reduced schedule, the High Speed Rail is running normally, and Taiwan Railway trains in the north resume after noon. The Central Weather Administration expects to lift the land warning around this evening, rain should ease this afternoon, and Sunday looks better.

This is also a long weekend. Retrocession Day falls on Sunday October 25, so government offices are closed on Monday October 26 as well. If you have been stuck indoors since Thursday, here is what is open, how to get around, and what to do if the storm left water on your floor.

Photo: ynes95 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (Taipei during a 2015 typhoon)

What happened

Champi was the 29th typhoon of the year and at one point one of the strongest storms in the Pacific. It started affecting Taiwan on Thursday, sat off Yilan on Friday night, and moved north past Nanfang'ao early Saturday morning, according to United Daily News.

The numbers are serious even without a landfall:

• Wind: Datun Mountain in Taipei recorded level 17 gusts, the highest on the main island (UDN).
• Damage: 3,671 damage reports, one death in Liuqiu after a man was swept off a beach, and more than 500 people injured.
• Power: more than 150,000 households lost power at some point. Most were restored within hours.
• Flights: every domestic and international flight on Thursday was cancelled, 262 domestic and 715 international, according to the Taipei Times.

In Taipei itself the city saw strong gusts and heavy rain but no widespread flooding in the reports we have seen. The mountains are a different story: New Taipei, Taoyuan and Yilan mountain areas were forecast to get 600 to 900 mm of rain, so stay off hiking trails this weekend even if the sun comes out.

Today's closures: who is off

Thirteen cities and counties suspended work and classes for a second day on Saturday: Taipei, New Taipei, Keelung, Yilan, Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Hsinchu County, Miaoli, Taichung, Changhua, Nantou, Yunlin and Lienchiang (CNA). The south, including Tainan and Kaohsiung, is working normally.

The one page we trust for this is the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration's closure board in English. It lists every city's decision in one table. Expat group posts are often a day behind or simply wrong.

If your city is closed and your employer still asks you to come in, you can say no. A typhoon day cannot be counted as an absence or cut from your attendance bonus. If you do go in, that is between you and your employer, and many companies pay extra.

Getting around today

Here is the transport picture as of Saturday morning (NOWnews, Taipei Metro):

• Taipei MRT: running, with trains about every 12 minutes on most lines and every 6 minutes between Nanshijiao and Daqiaotou. Elevated and above-ground sections, including the Wenhu (brown) line, stop when the wind gets too strong, so check the Taipei Metro app before you leave.
• High Speed Rail: full service on the normal timetable. Trains may slow down in strong wind, so give yourself extra time for connections.
• Taiwan Railway: in the morning, express trains between Keelung and Changhua and on the Yilan and North-Link lines were suspended. Service resumes after noon, but some trains are still shortened or cancelled.
• Airport MRT: express trains are cancelled all day. Commuter trains run every 15 minutes, so add about 20 minutes to the trip to Taoyuan Airport.
• Flights: many Saturday flights are cancelled or delayed. Check your airline's app, not the airport departure board.

Our advice: if you do not need to go out today, don't. Trees and signboards are still coming down after the strongest gusts, and scooters are the worst place to be. Tomorrow is a better day for errands.

Free ticket refunds

If your plans changed, you do not lose money on train tickets. Both the High Speed Rail and Taiwan Railway give a free, full refund within one year of the travel date for tickets bought while the sea typhoon warning is in effect, including unused tickets and cancelled trains (NOWnews). Refund at any station counter. You do not need to rush this weekend.

Flights are different. Each airline sets its own rebooking rules, and most let you change for free when they cancel. Do it through the app to avoid the airport queue.

The weekend forecast

The weather service expects the land warning to be lifted around Saturday evening and the sea warning later tonight (ETtoday). Rain in the north should ease in the afternoon and shrink by evening, though Taipei and New Taipei can still get short heavy bursts.

• Sunday, October 25: rain stops in the north, sunny in central and southern Taiwan, highs around 29°C in Taipei.
• Monday, October 26: a holiday for government offices (Retrocession Day observed). Some scattered showers north of Taoyuan, clear in the center and south.

Private companies follow their own holiday calendar, so check with your employer about Monday.

Storm damage in your apartment: what to do

This is the part we get asked about every typhoon. Taipei apartments are concrete and usually survive the wind fine. What fails is the edges: old window frames, the seal around air conditioner pipes, rooftop waterproofing, and balcony drains blocked with leaves.

Walk around your place today and check:

1. Window frames and the wall under them. Wet paint, bubbles or a damp line means water is coming in around the frame.

2. The ceiling, especially if you live on the top floor or under a rooftop addition.

3. Balcony and laundry drains. Clear leaves now so the next rain does not back up into the living room.

4. Your fridge and freezer if you lost power for more than a few hours.

If something leaked, here is the order we recommend:

• Take photos and a short video first, before you mop. Get the date in the frame if you can (a phone screen with the time works).
• Tell your landlord in writing, on LINE or by text, not just by phone. It creates a record. A simple message in Chinese works best:

> 房東您好，颱風後 [客廳窗戶] 有漏水，附上照片。請問什麼時候方便安排修理？謝謝。

> (Hello, after the typhoon the [living room window] is leaking. Photos attached. When can you arrange a repair? Thank you.)

• Don't pay for repairs yourself before asking. Under Taiwan's Civil Code, Article 429, the landlord is responsible for repairs unless your contract says otherwise. If the landlord ignores you, Article 430 lets you set a reasonable deadline and then fix it yourself and deduct the cost from rent. Keep every receipt, and read your contract's repair clause first. Our guide to what a normal Taipei rental contract looks like shows where it usually is.
• Your own things are usually yours to insure. A wet laptop is not automatically the landlord's problem unless the leak came from something they already knew about and did not fix.

For fallen trees, blocked street drains or broken streetlights, call 1999, Taipei's 24-hour city hotline. For a power outage, call Taipower at 1911. If you are stuck on the language, the national foreigner hotline 1990 answers in English 24 hours a day.

Damp walls after a storm turn into mold within a week in this humidity. Run a dehumidifier in the affected room for a few days. Our mold and humidity guide explains how.

How TRA can help

If this typhoon showed you that your apartment leaks every time it rains, or your landlord takes a week to answer a message, that is a good reason to look for a better place before the next storm season.

When we help clients find a home in Taipei, we check exactly the things that fail in a typhoon: window frames, water stains on the ceiling, rooftop additions, and how the landlord responds when something breaks. We do the viewings with you and handle the landlord conversation in Chinese. Read more about how our apartment search works or tell us what you are looking for.

If you just need the place cleaned up after the water, TRA Live offers home cleaning in Taipei.

For a checklist to use before you sign your next lease, see how to check a Taipei apartment for humidity, mold and typhoon risk.

FAQ

Is Taipei MRT running during Typhoon Champi?

Yes. On Saturday October 24 the Taipei MRT is running with trains about every 12 minutes. Elevated and above-ground sections, including the Wenhu line, can stop when wind passes the safety limit, so check the Taipei Metro app before you go.

Is Monday October 26 a holiday in Taipei?

Government offices are closed on Monday October 26 because Retrocession Day falls on Sunday October 25. Private companies set their own calendar, so check with your employer.

Can I get a refund on my train ticket because of the typhoon?

Yes. The High Speed Rail and Taiwan Railway give a free full refund within one year of the travel date for tickets bought while the sea typhoon warning is in effect. Refund at any station.

My apartment leaked during the typhoon. Who pays for the repair?

Usually the landlord. Taiwan's Civil Code makes the landlord responsible for repairs unless the contract says otherwise. Photograph the damage, tell the landlord in writing, and do not pay for repairs before asking.

Where can I check official typhoon day announcements in English?

The DGPA closure board at dgpa.gov.tw lists every city's work and school decision in English. It is updated as soon as each city announces.

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