TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Typhoon Mawar (瑪娃) is predicted to bring the most precipitation to northern and eastern Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday (May 31-June 1), before moving further north on Friday (June 2).
As of 8 a.m. on Wednesday (May 31), Mawar was 430 km east of Eluanbi, moving north-northeast at 8 kph. It had a 300 km radius and was packing maximum sustained winds of 126 kph and gusts of up to 162 kph, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) reported.
Potential track area. (CWB image)
The CWB at 9:15 a.m. issued an extremely heavy rain advisory that will be in effect through the evening for mountainous areas of Yilan County. It also issued a heavy rain advisory for Taipei City, New Taipei City, Taoyuan City, the north coast of Keelung City, mountainous areas of Hsinchu County, mountainous areas of Taichung City, and Hualien County.
Meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) in his daily report said that Mawar is in the Bashi Channel and as it turns north will weaken in intensity. Wu predicted it would continue to be a moderate typhoon as it passes to the east of Taiwan from Wednesday to Thursday.
Wind radii probability. (CWB image)
Wu predicted after Mawar passes through the waters off the east coast, the CWB would lift its sea warning for the typhoon.
According to Wu, the latest European (ECMWF) modeling shows that from Wednesday to Friday (June 2), Mawar will turn back on itself in the Bashi Channel before slowly moving northward.
(JTWC image)
He advised people in mountainous areas of northern and northeastern Taiwan to beware of landslides and rockfalls caused by heavy rainfall and those on the coasts to be careful of strong winds. Meanwhile, the plains of central and southern Taiwan will see stable weather and hot temperatures.
Wu said Mawar's impact on Taiwan will start to decrease on Friday, but localized showers in northern and eastern Taiwan are still possible.
(JMA image)
On Wednesday, temperatures in plains areas in the north will range between 24 and 31 C, 24 to 36 C in central Taiwan, 24 to 36 C in the south, and 22 to 33 C in the east.
The European modeling shows that from Saturday to Monday (June 3-5), Mawar will weaken, turn to the northeast, pass near the Ryukyu Islands, and head toward the waters off southern Japan. During that time, weather will improve with partly cloudy to sunny skies seen across Taiwan, while there will still be a chance of localized showers in Hualien and Taitung and in mountainous areas in the afternoon.
(NOAA animated GIF)
