Taiwan braces for typhoon Koinu, torrential rain expected

Some flights and ferries have been cancelled as winds build

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan issued a land warning on Tuesday ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Koinu which is expected to bring heavy rain and winds to large parts of the island's south and east.

Koinu, now a category three typhoon, is likely to weaken to a category two by the time it makes landfall on Taiwan's far southeast coast late on Wednesday, according to Tropical Storm Risk.

The heaviest rain will fall along mountainous and sparsely populated parts of Pingtung county in the south and the east coast counties of Taitung and Hualien.

Some flights and ferries to outlying Taiwanese islands have been cancelled as winds build.

After passing through Taiwan, the typhoon will head towards southern China's Guangdong province where it is likely to weaken further to become a tropical storm.