Tropical Storm Talim is likely to be the first storm to hit Taiwan this year and is expected to bring heavy rainfall across the nation, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday.
The bureau said it would most likely issue a sea alert for the storm early this morning, while a land alert would be issued later in the day.
As of press time, the bureau had yet to issue a sea alert for Talim.
Graphic: TT
Information from the bureau showed that Talim, meaning “sharp” in Filipino, was formed at 2am yesterday.
By 5pm, the center of Talim was about 480km off the southwest coast of the Dongsha Islands (東沙群島). It was moving northeastward at 17kph, with a radius of 120km.
Forecaster Hsieh Min-ken (謝旻耕) said the bureau estimated the accumulated rainfall from today until Thursday could exceed 1,500mm in the mountainous areas of central and southern Taiwan because of the combined effect of Talim and the southwest monsoon.
The entire nation must be prepared to brave torrential rain, he said, adding that residents in central and southern Taiwan in particular must be ready to cope with the threat of extremely torrential rain.
Those living on the west coast need to be prepared for flooding caused by the rain and spring tide, the bureau said.
The bureau’s projected path of Talim showed it would cruise across the Taiwan Strait and be close to central Taiwan by tomorrow, when the wind and rain are expected to be the strongest.
The storm is then expected to move along the nation’s west coast before it moves away from Taiwan by Thursday.
While the rain is expected to be at its heaviest tomorrow and Thursday, the bureau forecast that the weather system around Taiwan would remain unstable until Friday.
Some of the meteorologists said Talim’s circumfluence resembled that of a tropical depression system that had caused severe flooding in August 1958. They said it was rare that a tropical storm or a typhoon would come from the Taiwan Strait, adding that the damage could be worse if it makes landfall.
In view of the disasters caused by last week’s torrential rain, the Directorate-General of Highways said it would start closing sections of several highways and county highways leading to scenic spots this afternoon, including Highways No. 7, 8, 9, 14, 18, 20 and 21.
Meanwhile, the Central Emergency Operation Center was activated at 3:30pm yesterday, half an hour earlier than scheduled, Cabinet officials said.
The relevant ministries have finalized their preparations for relief assistance, the Cabinet said in a statement, as it urged people to take early precautions against the storm and avoid traveling in mountainous areas.
Additional reporting by CNA
A car bomb killed a senior Russian general in southern Moscow yesterday morning, the latest high-profile army figure to be blown up in a blast that came just hours after Russian and Ukrainian delegates held separate talks in Miami on a plan to end the war. Kyiv has not commented on the incident, but Russian investigators said they were probing whether the blast was “linked” to “Ukrainian special forces.” The attack was similar to other assassinations of generals and pro-war figures that have either been claimed, or are widely believed to have been orchestrated, by Ukraine. Russian Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, 56, head
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off Yilan at 11:05pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter was located at sea, about 32.3km east of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 72.8km, CWA data showed There were no immediate reports of damage. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Yilan County area on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. It measured 4 in other parts of eastern, northern and central Taiwan as well as Tainan, and 3 in Kaohsiung and Pingtung County, and 2 in Lienchiang and Penghu counties and 1
SAFETY FIRST: Double the number of police were deployed at the Taipei Marathon, while other cities released plans to bolster public event safety Authorities across Taiwan have stepped up security measures ahead of Christmas and New Year events, following a knife and smoke bomb attack in Taipei on Friday that left four people dead and 11 injured. In a bid to prevent potential copycat incidents, police deployments have been expanded for large gatherings, transport hubs, and other crowded public spaces, according to official statements from police and city authorities. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said the city has “comprehensively raised security readiness” in crowded areas, increased police deployments with armed officers, and intensified patrols during weekends and nighttime hours. For large-scale events, security checkpoints and explosives
‘POLITICAL GAME’: DPP lawmakers said the motion would not meet the legislative threshold needed, and accused the KMT and the TPP of trivializing the Constitution The Legislative Yuan yesterday approved a motion to initiate impeachment proceedings against President William Lai (賴清德), saying he had undermined Taiwan’s constitutional order and democracy. The motion was approved 61-50 by lawmakers from the main opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), who together hold a legislative majority. Under the motion, a roll call vote for impeachment would be held on May 19 next year, after various hearings are held and Lai is given the chance to defend himself. The move came after Lai on Monday last week did not promulgate an amendment passed by the legislature that
RSS