Heavy rain alert issued for Taiwan even as storm moves away

Taipei, Sept. 13 (CNA) Tropical Storm Bebinca is moving further away from Taiwan than forecast, but central and eastern parts of the country can expect heavy rain Friday night, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.

As of 8 p.m. Friday, Bebinca was located about 1,230 kilometers east of Taipei, and was forecast to track in a northwesterly direction in the following six hours, at a speed of 26 kilometers per hour.

Bebinca, the 13th named storm in the Pacific typhoon season, had moved further north than previously forecast, the CWA said, but it warned of heavy rain in Taichung, Changhua, Yunlin, Chiayi, Nantou, Hualien and Taitung, as well as in mountainous areas in Miaoli and Kaohsiung.

Those areas could expect rainfall in excess of 40 millimeters in one hour or accumulated rainfall of over 80 millimeters in 24 hours, as well as thunderstorms and gusty winds throughout Friday night, it said.

As of 8:10 p.m. Friday, 119.5 mm of rainfall was recorded in Jhongpu Township, Chiayi County, the highest precipitation in Taiwan for the day, while three locations in Tainan's Baibe District had recorded 100-119 mm, CWA data showed.

On Saturday, northern and northeastern Taiwan, Penghu and Matsu can expect sporadic rain and thunderstorms, the CWA said, adding that there was also a possibility of heavy rain in those areas.

In other parts of Taiwan, the weather on Saturday will be sunny to cloudy, with occasional afternoon thunderstorms, while mountainous areas in central and southern Taiwan may see some heavy rains, the CWA said.

Meanwhile, temperatures on Saturday were forecast to range between 34 and 24 degrees Celsius across Taiwan and in the outlying islands of Kinmen, Penghu and Matsu, CWA data showed.

For more details on the current weather in Taiwan, please visit the Central Weather Administration website.