At least two people are dead and a further 30 reported missing in a single county as Super Typhoon Ragasa hammers Taiwan.

The country's fire department said the huge storm caused a barrier lake in the eastern county of Hualien to burst its banks.

The barrier lake, formed by landslides triggered by earlier heavy rain in the sparsely populated east of Taiwan, overflowed and sent a wall of water into Guangfu township.

The fire department put the number of missing in Hualien following the flood at 30, with two deaths reported in Guangfu.

Rescuers from across Taiwan are heading to Guangfu.

Taiwan logged almost 600mm of rainfall in its east due to the typhoon's outer rim, which has been impacting the island nation since Monday local time.

Chinese coastal areas brace for impact

The system

See Full Page