Extremely heavy rain alert issued in southern Taiwan

Taipei, July 26 (CNA) The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Saturday issued an extremely heavy rain advisory for Chiayi County in southern Taiwan, as a low-pressure system is expected to bring more downpours.

In addition, the CWA issued a heavy rain alert for Taichung City and Changhua and Nantou counties in central Taiwan, as well as Yunlin and Pingtung counties, Chiayi, Tainan and Kaohsiung cities, and the Hengchun Peninsula in the south.

Extremely heavy rain is defined as more than 200 mm in 24 hours or 100 mm in three hours, while heavy rain means over 80 mm in a day or 40 mm in an hour, according to the CWA.

The CWA said northern Taiwan may see brief, scattered showers or thundershowers, while eastern Taiwan is expected to have mostly cloudy to sunny skies with some afternoon thunderstorms.

The CWA added that residents in low-lying coastal areas of southern Taiwan, as well as in Keelung, the northern coast, and Yilan in the northeast, should stay alert for possible flooding.

Daytime temperatures around Taiwan are expected to range between 30 and 32 degrees Celsius, dropping to 26-28 degrees at night, the CWA said, adding that scorching heat will return once the rain lets up.

Citing the latest data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) said Taiwan will be affected by strong seasonal winds over the next few days until Aug. 1, with central and southern regions likely to see heavier rainfall.

Air quality across most of Taiwan was fair to good on Saturday, the Ministry of Environment said.

However, an "orange" alert was issued for parts of western Taiwan and the outlying Penghu and Kinmen islands, warning of unhealthy conditions for sensitive groups such as children, the elderly and those with respiratory or heart issues.