Temperatures in Greater Taipei could hit 36°C Sunday

Taipei, Aug. 17 (CNA) The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said temperatures in parts of Taiwan, including Taipei, could exceed 36 degrees Celsius on Sunday.

The CWA issued heat warnings, placing Taipei, New Taipei, Taoyuan, Changhua County, Yunlin County and Tainan under orange warnings, meaning three consecutive days of 36-degree weather are expected.

Meanwhile, Taichung was given a yellow warning, meaning temperatures in the central Taiwanese city are forecast to reach 36 degrees on Sunday.

As of noon, four spots around Taiwan had already seen temperatures of 36 degrees or higher: Shezi Island in Taipei (37.3 degrees), Wugu District in New Taipei (36.7 degrees), Neihu District in Taipei (36.1 degrees), and Lukang in Changhua County (36.0 degrees).

Ultraviolet radiation will be strong around noon, the CWA said, urging people who go outside to protect themselves from the sun and drink plenty of water.

The CWA forecast afternoon thunderstorms south of Hsinchu County in the west of the island, heavy rain in central mountainous areas, thunderstorms in eastern mountainous areas, and extremely heavy rain in southern Taiwan.

Keelung City in the north will likely see scattered showers, the CWA said.

Other regions, including Taiwan's outlying islands, will be mostly cloudy to sunny, according to the weather agency.

Wu De-rong (吳德榮), an adjunct associate professor at the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at National Central University (NCU), said Taiwan was under the influence of a high-pressure system over the Pacific Ocean, bringing extremely hot and sunny conditions.

Looking to the week ahead, Wu said Taiwan would remain hot, with conditions ranging from mostly sunny to cloudy until midweek.

However, increased moisture and unstable conditions would cause stronger afternoon convection and rain in the lead-up to the weekend and beyond, he said.

Wu also noted two tropical disturbances were gradually developing -- one in the South China Sea and another southeast of Taiwan -- though neither is expected to directly affect Taiwan.