KAOHSIUNG (AFP) — Taiwan closed schools and evacuated thousands of people in the south of the island Tuesday ahead of the arrival of super typhoon “Krathon” as the president warned it was likely to cause “catastrophic damage.”

“Krathon,” packing sustained winds of 198 kilometers per hour (kph) — equivalent to a Category 3 hurricane — and gusts of up to 245 kph was expected to make landfall Wednesday near the major port city of Kaohsiung.

Offices and schools were closed across southern and eastern Taiwan and the interior ministry said more than 7,700 people had been evacuated from vulnerable areas as a precaution. President Lai Ching-te warned “Krathon” could “inevitably cause catastrophic damage.”

“The path of ‘Krathon’ is relatively rare, entering from the south and exiting from the east. Therefore we must be particularly vigilant,” he said at a government briefing.

Nearly 40,000 troops were on standby for relief missions, the defense ministry said.

Dozens of international and domestic flights have been canceled.

In southern Kaohsiung where the typhoon was forecast to make landfall, residents filled sandbags and erected barriers around their homes for flood protection and taped windows.

Coast guard officers patrolling the nearby popular tourist beauty spot of Sizihwan Bay told people to stay away as powerful waves pounded the coast.