A tropical depression over waters east of the Philippines was upgraded to Tropical Storm Songda Thursday, although the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) indicated it would have no direct impact on Taiwan.

Songda, the 5th tropical storm in the region this year, was officially designated a tropical storm at 8 p.m..

The storm was located about 1,840 kilometers east of Eluanbi, Taiwan’s southernmost tip at 8 p.m. Thursday. It is moving in a northwesterly direction at a speed of 47 kilometers per hour (kph), packing sustained winds of 144 kph and gusts of up to 180 kph, the weather bureau said.

It is expected to move northwest toward Shanghai, China, in the coming days and is not forecast to have a direct impact on Taiwan, the bureau added.

However, northern, northeastern and eastern Taiwan are expected to have brief showers until Sunday as the tropical storm moves closer, while other areas are forecast to see cloudy to sunny skies and thunderstorms in the afternoons during that time, CWB forecaster Lin Ting-yi (???) told CNA.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel