A tropical depression located northeast of the Philippines strengthened into a tropical storm at about 8am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.
The CWA said the storm, named Francisco, is heading toward waters south of Okinawa, Japan.
Photo courtesy of the Central Weather Administration
As of 8am, the eye of the storm was 980km east of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the southernmost point of Taiwan, moving north-northwest at 20kph.
The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 65kph and gusts of 90kph, the CWA said.
The tropical storm is currently relatively small, but needs to be monitored to see how it develops before deciding on whether to issue a sea warning, the agency said.
The CWA said the storm is expected to get closest to Taiwan tomorrow and Friday, and could bring heavier rain to the northern and eastern parts of the country.
Independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) said Francisco would move over waters east of Taiwan before veering north of Taiwan and described it as having a loose structure and not being very strong.
Meanwhile, scorching heat is expected to continue today, the CWA said.
It has issued a yellow heat advisory for Hsinchu and Miaoli counties in the north and Tainan in the south, indicating daily maximum temperatures that could reach or exceed 36°C.
The warnings were to remain in effect at least into late this afternoon, the CWA said.
Daytime temperatures would largely range between 31°C and 35°C around Taiwan as cloudy to sunny skies prevail.
Localized brief showers or even thundershowers are possible in mountainous areas, as well as low-lying areas in Chiayi County and regions south of the county in the afternoon, the CWA said.
The air quality across most of Taiwan is fair to good today, the Ministry of Environment said.
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