Typhoon Ragasa is forecast to hit its peak strength and come closest to Taiwan from this afternoon through tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.
Taiwan's main island could be out of the storm circle by midday tomorrow and the sea warning may be lifted tomorrow night, the agency said.
Photo courtesy of the Central Weather Administration
CWA senior weather specialist Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) told a news conference that Ragasa's storm circle had reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) by 11am and is expected to hit Taitung County and Kaohsiung by this evening.
Ragasa is to move to Taiwan's southern offshore areas tonight and its southwestern offshore areas early tomorrow, Wu added.
As of 3pm, Ragasa's center was located at about 290km south-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point, the CWA said.
The storm was moving west-northwest at 21kph, with maximum winds near the storm's center of 209kph, it added.
Land warnings cover Kaohsiung, Taitung County, Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula, while sea warnings were issued for the Bashi Channel, the Taiwan Strait and waters as far south as Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea, the CWA said.
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