Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport was left in chaos late on Thursday by thunderstorms and floods causing power and computer outages, the state-run Central News Agency reported, according to dpa. More than 200 international flights and 30,000 passengers were affected, the agency said. Power outages in northern Taiwan triggered by thunderstorms early on Thursday led to the shutdown of the airport's air conditioning system, causing key computer systems to overheat and malfunction. Immigration officials were forced to resort to manual clearances for arriving passengers, severely slowing down the process, while the airport's baggage claim service was partially suspended. Airport authorities said they were doing their best to solve problems, but that power outages remained a major concern as nearby transformer substations were overwhelmed. Major access roads to the airport could be reopened to traffic late on Thursday after flood water was successfully pumped out. Premier Lin Chuan late Thursday blaming the chaos caused by flooding on construction flaws, instructing that those responsible for the defects be held liable, according to Cabinet Spokesman Tung Chen-yuan.
