Intense thunderstorms across Taiwan proper on Monday night were brought by a fast-moving plum rain front, meteorologist Peng Chi-ming (彭啟明) said on Tuesday.
The front’s path was classic for the season, but only took eight hours to sweep from north to south, Peng said on Facebook.
“Fortunately, it did not linger in one place too long,” he said, adding that the typical plum rain front brings more total rainfall from sporadic cloudbursts.
Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan Department of Water Resources via CNA
Peng also recommended reinforcing buildings for more downpours and potential flooding, as “this will definitely not be the heaviest rainfall of the year.”
At the same time, the “very strong” front brought significant rainfall to Tainan and Kaohsiung, helping to alleviate drought conditions in those areas, Peng said.
Areas in Taoyuan reported serious flooding and power outages on Monday night, with six districts seeing more than 40mm in one hour.
Photo courtesy of the Central Weather Bureau
Yangmei District (楊梅) had the most total rainfall, at one point seeing 60mm in an hour, the Taoyuan Department of Water Resources said.
About 20 areas were flooded with water generally less than 20cm deep, the department said, adding that they gradually drained after the rain stopped overnight.
As the temperature has dropped to 22 to 25 degrees Celsius in northern and eastern Taiwan, Peng advised dressing appropriately and bringing rain gear for lingering showers.
Taiwan is to experience summer-like weather from Wednesday to Saturday, with potential afternoon thunderstorms in mountainous areas and temperatures exceeding 30 degrees Celsius, Peng said.
From Sunday, the nation might be affected by the outer bands of Typhoon Mawar, bringing rainfall to the north and east, Peng said.
The storm is on track to potentially make landfall on the US territory of Guam midday on Wednesday.
Already a strong typhoon with maximum sustained winds of 144kph, Mawar is expected to strengthen further as it travels over the Philippine Sea.
Currently on a westward path, a weakening Pacific high pressure system could push the storm north, although it is difficult to estimate its precise path, Peng said.
The storm could affect Taiwan between Sunday and Tuesday, he said, advising people to pay attention to developing news and exercise caution when engaging in ocean activities.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and