A sea alert could be issued this morning as Tropical Storm Linfa turns north to enter the Bashi Channel, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said yesterday.
Bureau statistics show that the storm was 430km south of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) at 2pm yesterday.
The bureau says the storm might head north after passing through the Philippines’ Luzon Island.
The bureau said there is a good chance the storm will only skirt the nation’s east coast on its way northward. However, it does not completely rule out the possibility that it might make landfall in Taiwan if the storm’s progress north slows or it turns at a smaller angle than expected.
According to the bureau the high-pressure system in the Pacific Ocean and Typhoon Chan Hom — which is about 2,700km from Taiwan — could alter Linfa’s course.
The bureau said the storm could continue to affect the nation’s weather until Thursday because of the gradual weakening Pacific high-pressure system, which could slow Linfa’s progress.
Other weather agencies have differing estimates of Linfa’s potential impact.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the storm would only sweep through the sea near the east coast and continue to move north, whereas the Joint Typhoon Warning Center of the US Navy and Air Force said it is likely to make landfall on the southeast coast on Thursday or Friday.
Although Chan Hom is moving toward Japan’s Ryuku Islands, the bureau said it would monitor if the high pressure system would prevent the typhoon from moving north and consequently have an impact on the nation’s northeast coast.
Typhoon Nangka would not affect Taiwan in the short term, as it is still more than 4,900km away, the bureau said. The bureau also reported that it had detected large waves off the coast of Yilan yesterday due to the storm.
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