Typhoon Dujuan (杜鵑), the third typhoon to approach Taiwan this year, will strongly affect the nation's weather today and tomorrow, but whether it will bring abundant rainfall to lift an impeding drought threatening the north remained uncertain, according to the Central Weather Bureau yesterday.
Yesterday, the bureau issued land and sea warnings as Dujuan was heading for the nation at 28kph.
Officials said Dujuan gained strength early yesterday morning transforming from a tropical storm into a typhoon as it continued to grow in size.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Ships' crews sailing in the Bashi Channel and off the Pacific coast should exercise vigilance at sea as they face strong winds and heavy rains, officials at the bureau said.
According to Fred Tsai (
By 7pm yesterday, Dujuan was about 800km from Taiwan and it will have a strong impact on local weather, Tsai said.
A military drill scheduled for today in Hualien and shuttle boats between Kaohsiung and the Penghu archipelago were canceled.
Weather forecasters said that it was uncertain if there would be enough rain in the north to relieve the drought.
Yesterday, the water level at Shihmen Reservoir was 213m, while that at Feitsui Reservoir was 133.6m.
Regulations stipulate that the second phase of water restrictions should be imposed in Taoyuan County when the water level at Shihmen drops to 210m and in the greater Taipei area when the water level at Feitsui falls to 130m.
"If the coming typhoon fails to bring enough rain, stricter water-conservation measures will be carried out anyway in September," Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Yi-fu (
Last week, the Water Resources Bureau predicted that Shihmen's water level was expected to fall to 210m by Sept. 5, while Feitsui's water level could drop to 130m by Sept. 10.
The ministry will conduct a meeting on the coming Thursday to discuss whether to impose the second phase of water restrictions in the Taipei and Taoyuan areas.
To tackle emerging water problems and come up with long-term strategies to manage the nation's limited water resources, the 2003 National Conference on Water Resources will be held today by the economics ministry in Taipei.
Chief of the Water Resources Agency Chen Shen-hsien (
"For example, the water price for heavy users in the industrial sector will definitely be raised. The water price in dry seasons will be higher than that in rain seasons," Chen said.
Chen said water prices would be adjusted after March next year.
The military drill that was postponed was initially set for today and has been rescheduled for Thursday, according to the Ministry of National Defense.
In a brief statement, the defense ministry said yesterday the live-ammunition amphibious exercise, code-named Hankuang No. 16, will be held at the same beach location, which was not disclosed.
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