The public should be aware of Tropical Storm Haitang, which is growing in strength as it approaches Taiwan, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday.
And while the first potential typhoon of the season to threaten Taiwan was moving west, a new record high temperature for the year of 36.8?C was recorded at noon yesterday in Taipei City. Similar temperatures over the next few days will continue to make life uncomfortable -- bureau officials said that it is not easy for the Taipei Basin to release accumulated heat.
The highest temperatures recorded throughout the rest of Taiwan yesterday did not exceed 35?C.
COOLING OFF
The forecasters said that the influence of a high-pressure cell in the Pacific Ocean would be offset by cooling afternoon showers in the north of the country.
Tropical Storm Haitang, which was about 2,800km east of Taiwan yesterday, is growing in size, with a radius measured yesterday at 150km. The storm is expected to travel west for at least five days before it begins to affect Taiwan's weather.
"With the velocity of Haitang varying only slightly, we predict that it will be very close to Taiwan from next Monday to Wednesday," forecaster Chen Yi-liang (
The bureau said a more accurate prediction would be announced on the weekend.
Daniel Wu (
"Haitang's peripheral currents might affect the weather in Taiwan as early as this Sunday," he said.
Yesterday, legislators and environmentalists urged the government to apply preventive strategies to protect the public from typhoon damage.
Taiwan suffers from an average of 3.5 typhoons and dozens of damaging downpours causing NT$12.8 billion (US$400 million) in losses annually. Global climate change is thought to be worsening the situation.
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Last year, nine typhoons struck Taiwan, resulting in devastating floods, mudslides and other disasters. A flood in central Taiwan on July 2 last year inundated 659km2 of land. Last month, heavy rains in central and southern parts of the nation claimed 14 lives and resulted in losses exceeding NT$1.4 billion.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang To-far (
Lin I-chen (
"So far, we don't have basic data for any devastating flood. Without knowing the extent and the mechanism of flooding, how can the government manage water properly?" Lin asked.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
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