Much of Taiwan was plunged into chaos on Wednesday and the Chinese coast is on red alert as Super Typhoon Meranti barrels its way through the western Pacific.

More than half a million homes lost power across Taiwan and at least five people were been injured as Meranti, believed to be the world’s strongest storm this year, hit the island.

Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau warned that the Category 5 storm threatened several southern and eastern cities, including Kaohsiung and Hualien, with strong winds, torrential rain and flooding.

Meranti, which grew in strength the closer it got to Taiwan, was carrying maximum winds of around 220 km per hour as it clipped the south of the island, the weather bureau said.

“This typhoon is the world’s strongest so far this year,” weather bureau spokeswoman Hsieh Pei-yun said.

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Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operation Centre confirmed five people were injured, while many power lines were brought down, some by falling trees, cutting electricity to 550,000 households.

“The damage from Meranti will continue to rise as the storm slams the island,” said emergency centre spokesman Li Wei-sen.

“Losses probably cannot be avoided, but we’ll try to minimise casualties.”

Trains and shipping services were disrupted, while offices and schools in Kaohsiung and other cities were closed and almost 1500 people were evacuated, the centre said.

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Most domestic flights were been cancelled, including all of those from Kaohsiung airport, where international flights were also severely affected.

Taiwan shut down two nuclear reactors in its third nuclear plant in Hengchun on Wednesday as a precaution due to the impact of Meranti, thought to be the worst typhoon to hit the island in 21 years.

Incredible Himawari-8 rapid scan imagery of Super Typhoon Meranti in W. Pacific. See more at https://t.co/Uzj4PqFZyF pic.twitter.com/elTETtbTl1

— NOAA Satellites (@NOAASatellites) September 13, 2016

The official China News Service, Xhinua, said the storm could be the strongest typhoon to hit that part of China since 1969.

China’s National Marine Environment Forecasting Centre has issued its highest red alert as Super Typhoon Meranti approaches the country’s eastern coast.

Winds of up to 200 kph lashed much of Taiwan. Photo: AAP

The typhoon is causing waves over 12 metres while moving west from Taiwan towards the coast of China, where it is expected to arrive on Thursday. 

The waves are expected to reach the coast of the Chinese provinces of Fujian and Zhejiang in the east, and Canton in the south.

The typhoon will first make landfall in Fujian and Canton on Thursday and authorities have launched an emergency response program and ordered all ships to return to port and residents to remain indoors.

The authorities have also ordered embankments of dams to be reinforced to prevent overflows.

– with AAP