Fung-wong has been downgraded to a tropical storm from a typhoon as it approaches Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today.
The storm has weakened, but would still pose a major threat to Taiwan and its surrounding waters as it comes closer, CWA forecaster Chu Mei-lin (朱美霖) told reporters.
Photo courtesy of the Central Weather Administration
As of 9am, the center of Tropical Storm Fung-wong was 360km southwest of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point, and moving north-northeast to northeast at 12kph.
It was carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 108kph and gusts of 137kph, compared with 119kph and 155kph respectively recorded at about 7am when Fung-wong was still classified as a typhoon.
The CWA issued a land warning at 5:30am, saying the alert covered Kaohsiung, Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) in southern Taiwan.
Chu said the latest update on the storm extended the land warning to Tainan and Taitung County, and it was likely to include Chiayi County later in the day.
The storm is expected to move in a northeasterly direction tomorrow and is likely to make landfall in southern Taiwan sometime during the afternoon or evening, Chu said.
It would then continue to move in a northeast direction, with its strength sapped further due to geographic reasons.
Chu said the storm could exit from northeastern Taiwan late tomorrow evening or early Thursday morning, and could become a tropical depression or a tropical cyclone as it leaves Taiwan.
Meanwhile, an "extreme torrential rain" advisory was issued for Yilan County and heavy rain alerts for several other areas.
The rain advisories, issued early today, would remain in effect through tonight, the CWA said.
"Extreme torrential rain" is defined by the agency as rainfall exceeding 500mm within 24 hours.
A torrential rain advisory — meaning accumulated rainfall of 350mm or more in 24 hours or more than 200mm within three hours — was issued for Taipei, New Taipei City, Hualien County and Taitung County.
The CWA also warned of extremely heavy or heavy rain in several other cities and counties, including Keelung, Taoyuan, Hsinchu County, Miaoli County, Taichung, Kaohsiung and Pingtung County.
The CWA said rainfall is expected to intensify across most of Taiwan throughout the day due to the combined influence of northeasterly winds and Tropical Storm Fung-wong's outer bands.
Rainfall in mountainous parts of greater Taipei and eastern Taiwan is expected to be significant and persistent, with a chance of localized torrential rain, the agency said.
The CWA urged people to exercise caution when outdoors and to be aware of possible landslides, falling rocks and river surges in mountainous areas.
Brief, scattered showers are also forecast from Taoyuan in the north to Kaohsiung and Pingtung in the south.
Daytime highs are forecast to range between 22°C and 25°C in areas north of Hsinchu County and across Taiwan's eastern half and 27°C to 30°C elsewhere.
The CWA said that as Fung-wong moves closer to Taiwan tomorrow, heavy to torrential rain is expected in the central and southern parts of the main island.
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