The Central Weather Bureau yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Nuri, which was upgraded from a tropical storm early yesterday morning.
At 5:40pm, the center of the typhoon was located 230km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) in Pingtung County. It was moving northwest at a speed of 24kph with a radius of 200km.
The typhoon already poses a threat to sea-going vessels operating in the Bashi Channel and Dongsha Islands (東沙群島), the bureau said.
Chen Yi-liang (陳怡良), section chief at the Forecast Center, said earlier yesterday that Nuri’s circumfluence could start bringing rain to the east coast and Hengchun (恆春) in Pingtung County by evening.
The typhoon has slowed down after entering the Bashi Channel, he said.
Whether it heads toward Taiwan would depend on the guiding air stream, he said.
If the typhoon moves north, the bureau might issue a land warning some time between midnight and early today, but would delay the announcement if the typhoon moves further west, he said.
Meanwhile, the US Air Force yesterday dispatched a C130 reconnaissance jet to make two passes through the center of the typhoon to collect data and better understand Nuri’s structure.
It was the first time the US has sent observation planes to monitor a typhoon in the western Pacific since 1987.
Meanwhile, the Council of Agriculture yesterday urged farmers and fishermen to take preventive measures to reduce potential impact from the expected strong winds and rain.
Additional reporting by Meggie Lu
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