Typhoon Nanmadol made landfall in southern Taiwan Monday, bringing high winds and torrential rains that shut down schools and businesses and forced the evacuation of thousands of people.

The storm, with winds of over 100 kilometers per hour, hit the island just before dawn in Taitung county in the southeast and moved toward heavily populated coastal areas on the west coast. Authorities evacuated more than 6,000 people from the east and south of the island before the storm arrived.

Forecasters say Nanmadol is expected to pass well south of the capital, Taipei, and leave the island by midnight before weakening to a tropical storm on its way to the east coast of China.

The slow-moving typhoon battered the northern Philippines Saturday and Sunday, killing at least 12 people and triggering floods and landslides that toppled walls and blocked roads. Authorities say the death toll may rise, as several people are still missing and are believed to have been swept away by flood waters. Many others were injured.

At least 50,000 people were forced to flee their homes.