Heavy rains are expected today and tomorrow across Taiwan and the outlying islands and residents in mountainous areas in central and northern parts of the country should be alert to potential landslides, according to the Central Weather Bureau yesterday.
The rain is the result of southwesterly air currents hovering over the Taiwan Strait. As of yesterday, rainfalls exceeding 200mm were recorded in some mountainous areas, including Wufeng, Taichung County and Shuanghsi, Taipei County. On the outlying island of Matsu, 144mm rainfall had been measured as of 5pm yesterday.
"In the following three days, much of the island will see heavy rain," bureau meteorologist Tang Shuen-lan (
Meanwhile, the Council of Agriculture yesterday issued landslide warnings to certain mountainous townships, including Fuhsing Township, Taoyuan County, as well as Janshih and Wufeng in Hsinchu County. The latter two places had been seriously hit by Typhoon Aere late last month, and large amounts of soil, mud and debris polluted the reservoir upstream from Shihmen Dam, one of main reservoirs in northern Taiwan.
Heavy rain warnings will likely dampen the spirits of residents in southern Taoyuan, whose tap water only recently became available af-ter an almost two-week suspension.
Beginning yesterday morning, normal water services became available in Taoyuan areas expect households sitting in elevated areas. Several temporary pumping stations installed at Shihmen Dam were up and running yesterday to move untreated surface water at the reservoir to the Shihmen Main Canal. Through the canal, untreated water diverted from the reservoir was transferred to the Pingjen Water Treatment Plant.
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