Typhoon Danas weakened to a tropical storm after making landfall in Chiayi County late last night, and its eye left Taiwan this morning near the border of Taoyuan and Hsinchu, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.
Danas was downgraded to a tropical storm at about 5am as its outer band began to shrink, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said.
Danas is expected to continue weakening, but its broad radius would still affect Taiwan, Wu said.
Photo: CNA
As of 9am, Danas was 70km north-northwest of Taipei, moving northwest at 10kph to 16kph, with maximum sustained winds of 90kph and gusts up to 119kph, the CWA said.
The land warning issued on Saturday night was still in effect for Keelung, Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan, as well as Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties, Wu said.
The sea warning issued on Saturday morning remains in effect for the waters off northern and northeastern Taiwan, and north of the Taiwan Strait, she said.
The land warning would likely be lifted this afternoon, while the sea warning could be removed late this evening at the earliest, Wu said.
However, the storm continues to bring moisture to Taiwan, with rain persisting in mountainous areas in the central and southern regions, she said.
Mountainous parts of Kaohsiung and Pingtung County might experience localized extremely heavy or torrential rain today, while Miaoli and areas to its south could receive heavy to extremely heavy rain, Wu said.
Localized heavy rain is also expected in Hsinchu, northern and eastern Taiwan, and outlying Penghu County, she said.
As of 8:30am, Pingtung's Majia Township (瑪家) had recorded 288mm of rain, while Kaohsiung's Sinsing District (新興) reported 214.5mm, the CWA said.
The storm's outer bands could cause hot, dry winds in Taitung, pushing daytime temperatures above 36°C, Wu said.
Danas is expected to move westward and make landfall in China, she added.
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The next minimum wage hike is expected to exceed NT$30,000, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday during an award ceremony honoring “model workers,” including migrant workers, at the Presidential Office ahead of Workers’ Day today. Lai said he wished to thank the awardees on behalf of the nation and extend his most sincere respect for their hard work, on which Taiwan’s prosperity has been built. Lai specifically thanked 10 migrant workers selected for the award, saying that although they left their home countries to further their own goals, their efforts have benefited Taiwan as well. The nation’s industrial sector and small businesses lay
Taiwan's first indigenous defense submarine, the SS-711 Hai Kun (海鯤, or Narwhal), departed for its 13th sea trial at 7am today, marking its seventh submerged test, with delivery to the navy scheduled for July. The outing also marked its first sea deployment since President William Lai (賴清德) boarded the submarine for an inspection on March 19, drawing a crowd of military enthusiasts who gathered to show support. The submarine this morning departed port accompanied by CSBC Corp’s Endeavor Manta (奮進魔鬼魚號) uncrewed surface vessel and a navy M109 assault boat. Amid public interest in key milestones such as torpedo-launching operations and overnight submerged trials,
RSS