A tropical depression east of the Philippines strengthened into Tropical Storm Wipha early today and is forecast to move westward toward waters north of Luzon, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA).
As of 2am, the storm's center was about 710 kilometers southeast of Cape Eluanbi, Taiwan's southernmost point, and was shifting from a northwesterly to westerly path at 19 kilometers per hour, the CWA said.
Wipha is forecast to move toward waters off northern Luzon, pass through the Bashi Channel, and enter the South China Sea, the weather agency said, adding that it is expected to come closest to Taiwan from later this afternoon through tomorrow.
Photo: CWA website
Rain is expected across Taiwan as the storm's outer bands approach, according to the CWA.
As for today's weather, sporadic rain or thunderstorms are likely in eastern Taiwan, while other areas can expect cloudy skies with a chance of brief afternoon showers, the CWA added.
Independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) said heavy rain is likely in eastern Taiwan and Pingtung County from tomorrow to Sunday.
Citing the latest forecast model, Wu said Wipha is expected to pass through the Bashi Channel into the South China Sea over the weekend. He added that while western Taiwan may see scattered showers, eastern regions and Pingtung County could experience heavy rain.
From Monday to Thursday, seasonal winds along with the potential development of another tropical system could bring severe weather to Taiwan, though the situation still requires close monitoring, he said.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
STATS: Taiwan’s average life expectancy of 80.77 years was lower than that of Japan, Singapore and South Korea, but higher than in China, Malaysia and Indonesia Taiwan’s average life expectancy last year increased to 80.77 years, but was still not back to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak of 81.32 years in 2020, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. The average life expectancy last year increased the 0.54 years from 2023, the ministry said in a statement. For men and women, the average life expectancy last year was 77.42 years and 84.30 years respectively, up 0.48 years and 0.56 years from the previous year. Taiwan’s average life expectancy peaked at 81.32 years in 2020, as the nation was relatively unaffected by the pandemic that year. The metric
RSS