Extremely heavy rain is expected nationwide over the next two days as Tropical Storm Lionrock moves closer to Taiwan, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said last night.
At 8:30pm, the bureau issued a sea warning for Lionrock, which was located 320km west-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) — the southernmost tip of Taiwan. It was moving southeasterly at 6kph.
The bureau said the status of Namtheun had been downgraded from tropical storm to tropical depression last night and lifted the land and sea alerts for Namtheun.
Forecaster Chen Yi-liang (陳怡良) said Namtheun’s force was weakening.
“Namtheun has become less of a threat, but we will still need to monitor the development of Lionrock and cannot underestimate the extremely heavy rain brought by Lionrock,” Chen said.
As of 6:15pm yesterday, the center of Namtheun was located 150km west of Taipei. It was moving southwesterly at 7kph.
Tropical Storm Kompasu, meanwhile gained momentum and strengthened into a typhoon earlier yesterday. It was centered 870km east of Taiwan and was moving northwest at 24kph.
No major damage was reported as of press time, although the rain caused minor road damage in some areas, including sections of the West Coast Highway (西濱公路) near Miaoli County.
Those planning to travel today are advised to check conditions before setting out and to call airline and shipping companies to confirm if services have been canceled because of the weather.
As part of preparations for the approaching storms, the Ministry of National Defense dispatched a total of 3,362 soldiers to 70 townships nationwide, including Kaohsiung County’s Namasiya (那瑪夏) and Taoyuan (桃源) townships, where Typhoon Morakot wreaked havoc in August last year.
In related news, Kaohsiung District Prosecutor’s Office yesterday closed an investigation into the deaths caused by Morakot with the conclusion that the casualties were the result of a natural disaster rather than negligence or criminality.
Prosecutor Wang Chun-li (王俊力) said the case was formally closed as no crime suspects or clear evidence of illegal conduct was found after the year-long investigation.
Wang said the prosecutors visited local residents and places devastated by the storm to investigate whether any individuals or agencies had behaved illegally.
They also consulted various government departments such as the Water Resources Agency, the Forestry Bureau’s Pingtung Forest District Office, the Soil and Water Conservation Bureau and the Kaohsiung County government to collect information, Wang said.
An assessment team led by university professors also produced a report to assist the investigation, he added.
However, some survivors of mudslide-battered Siaolin Village (小林) in Kaohsiung County expressed concerns about the investigation.
Tsai Sung-yu (蔡松諭), head of a reconstruction and development association in the village, said that survivors had not been invited to take part in the investigation.
The government should hold a briefing for these survivors to explain the investigation report and also propose concrete measures to prevent such disasters from happening again, he said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STAFF WRITER
Also See: Torrential rains lead to cancelation of campaign rallies
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique