A cold spell that started yesterday is likely to last more than a week, with lows of 8°C expected in some areas this weekend, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said.
With the arrival of a strong continental air mass, temperatures dipped to between 11°C and 14°C in Yilan and areas north of Tainan early yesterday, it said.
The cold air mass is forecast to be strongest between late yesterday and early today, when the mercury is likely to fall to 11°C in central, northern and northeastern Taiwan, and 13°C in other regions, the bureau said.
Another strong continental air mass is to arrive late tomorrow and linger until at least Sunday, it said.
There is a chance the mass will be upgraded to a cold surge at the weekend, which would see the mercury plunging to 8°C in central, northern and northeastern Taiwan, and between 10°C and 13°C in the south and east, the bureau said.
Meanwhile, a front moving in from southern China is to bring rain to the north and east for most of this week, but the wet weather is to ease from Thursday, it said.
Snow is expected in the next few days at elevations higher than 3,000m, the bureau said, adding that on Saturday and Sunday, snowfall might occur as low as 2,000m.
The Taipei Department of Health yesterday said it has launched a probe into a restaurant at Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store after a customer died of suspected food poisoning. A preliminary investigation on Sunday found missing employee health status reports and unsanitary kitchen utensils at Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in the department store’s basement food court, the department said. No direct relationship between the food poisoning death and the restaurant was established, as no food from the day of the incident was available for testing and no other customers had reported health complaints, it said, adding that the investigation is ongoing. Later
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