Pingtung: A tropical depression near Hainan, previously known as Typhoon Saudel, has intensified into a tropical storm, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) reported early Tuesday. The storm, now moving northeast at 22 kilometers per hour, was located over waters northeast of Hainan Island when it regained strength.
According to Focus Taiwan, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan stated that Saudel is expected to continue its northeastern path through Tuesday, turn north on Wednesday, and then weaken back into a tropical depression by Thursday as it approaches China's coast. The storm is projected to be nearest to the Taiwan Strait from late Tuesday through Wednesday, with a low chance of necessitating a sea warning. However, the CWA continues to monitor its track closely.
In a related weather development, another tropical storm named Krovanh formed over waters southeast of the Ryukyu Islands on Tuesday morning. Forecaster Lee indicated that Krovanh is predicted to head toward Japan without directly impacting Taiwan, although it may influence wind patterns around the island, affecting rainfall distribution.
Currently, Taiwan is under the influence of a low-pressure system, which is causing strong southwesterly winds and substantial rainfall south of Chiayi County. Southern Taiwan is warned to prepare for localized extremely heavy rain, while regions such as Hualien and Taitung may experience heavy rain and northern Taiwan could see thunderstorms and short-duration heavy rainfall in the afternoon.
As winds transition from southwesterly to southerly starting Tuesday night, the CWA anticipates a reduction in rainfall over western Taiwan. Despite this shift, southern Taiwan is expected to continue experiencing brief showers and thunderstorms, with Taitung forecasted to receive the most intense rainfall from Tuesday night through Wednesday.
On Wednesday, significant rainfall is predicted for southern and eastern Taiwan, with Taitung County likely to encounter localized extremely heavy rain. Similarly, southern Taiwan and Hualien County may experience localized heavy rain, and mountainous areas are expected to receive considerable rainfall in the afternoon.
The CWA forecasts a slight reduction in rainfall in Taitung on Thursday, but localized heavy rain could still impact western Taiwan and Yilan County in northeastern Taiwan.
Pingtung County, Taiwan's southernmost district, has been severely affected by the heavy rainfall linked to the low-pressure system over the past 36 hours. CWA data shows that the top 16 rainfall totals in Taiwan from midnight Sunday to 3 p.m. Tuesday were recorded in Pingtung County.
In response to the adverse weather conditions, the Pingtung County government has heightened the alert level of its emergency operations center to Level 3. As a precautionary measure, offices and schools in Shiwen Village in Chunri Township and Changle Village in Manzhou Township were closed on Tuesday. Additionally, the county government has been evacuating residents from mountainous areas since Monday, with a total of 226 people evacuated as of Tuesday morning, including 138 from Chunri Township and 88 from Manzhou Township.