TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The authorities ordered evacuations of residents and tourists as a new barrier lake emerged near Hualien’s Taroko Gorge on Friday.

At least 19 people died when the Mataian barrier lake overflowed during Typhoon Ragasa last month, sending mud and rocks through the streets of Guangfu Township. With Tropical Storm Fengshen expected to form over the weekend, authorities have been preparing evacuations.

Following reports of rockfalls near the Jinheng Tunnel on the Central Cross-Island Highway and on the Liwu Creek Friday morning, a team from the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency went to assess the situation, the Liberty Times reported. The experts found an 800-meter-long barrier lake with the surface just 2.5 meters below the western exit of the tunnel in Xiulin Township.

Judging from the speed of the water rising, the road might be flooded early Friday evening. As a result, local residents were ordered to evacuate, and travelers were warned not to use the road and to stay away from the area.

Because of the new barrier, the Liwu Creek was expected to change course, flowing through the 441-meter-long Jinheng Tunnel and making road traffic between Tianxiang and Taroko impossible, according to the Highway Bureau. Two bulldozers had been unable to reach the site of the rockfall because of dangerous road conditions.