Heavy rain to continue bombarding northern half of Taiwan Monday

Taipei, March 31 (CNA) Regions north of central Taiwan can expect the heavy rain to continue Monday daytime before easing evening, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said Sunday.

CWA weather forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) told CNA that the approaching weather front, which has brought heavy rain to the region since Sunday morning, will keep the probability of precipitation high.

Southern Taiwan may also see localized heavy rain, Lin added.

Lin forecast that the weather will be relatively stable across Taiwan on Tuesday and Wednesday, with cloudy to sunny skies. Mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan may see sporadic showers.

From Thursday to Saturday, however, another weather front will arrive and bring sporadic showers to northern and eastern Taiwan as well as mountainous regions in central Taiwan. On Sunday, mountainous areas in the south could also see rain, Lin said.

Regarding temperature, lows across Taiwan will hover at 21-25 degrees Celsius on Monday. In the north and east, daytime highs will reach 25-29 degrees, while they will soar to 32-33 degrees in central and southern Taiwan, Lin said.

It will become hotter on Tuesday and Wednesday, with highs expected to reach 32-34 degrees in the western half of the island. On Thursday, the rain is expected to lower temperatures in the north and east to around 24-25 degrees, Lin said.

On Wednesday, extremely high temperatures may be expected in Taitung County due to foehn winds, Lin said.

Foehn winds are dry, strong, and hot downslope winds, which hit Taimali Township in Taitung County around the early afternoon Sunday, causing the mercury to rise to 39 degrees at 2:19 p.m., according to the CWA.