Heavy rain forecast for Wednesday afternoon; mercury to top 36°C

Taipei, Aug. 20 (CNA) Heavy rain is forecast for western Taiwan on Wednesday as some moist air moves in, but temperatures will stay above 36 degrees Celsius as a Pacific high pressure system persists, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA).

The CWA said weather conditions are expected to turn unstable Wednesday afternoon with showers or thundershowers possible, in particular in the west and mountainous areas in the east.

Scorching weather conditions are also expected to prevail, however, as the CWA issued an "orange" alert for Taipei City in the north and Pingtung County in the south Wednesday, indicating highs of 36 degrees for three straight days.

The heat advisory is expected to stay in effect into late Wednesday afternoon, the CWA said.

Daytime temperatures are forecast to range between 34-35 degrees elsewhere in western Taiwan, and 31-32 degrees in the east, the CWA forecast.

The agency urged people going outdoors to take precautions against sun exposure as ultraviolet (UV) levels are expected to reach dangerous levels, in particular around noon.

On Tuesday, the highest temperatures around Taiwan were 36.5 degrees recorded in Sandimen in Pingtung and 35.8 degrees in Sigang District in Tainan, also in the south, according to the CWA.

Citing the latest data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) said cloudy to sunny skies are expected to continue over the weekend, with temperatures hitting as high as 38 degrees.

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