Tropical storm to spare Taiwan, but week of rain awaits north, northeast

Taipei, Nov. 2 (CNA) Tropical Storm Kalmaegi is not expected to directly affect Taiwan, but seasonal northeasterly winds will bring intermittent rain to northern and eastern Taiwan, the Hengchun Peninsula, and central mountainous areas on Sunday, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA).

The agency also forecast that northern Taiwan will see rain for most of next week.

Temperature-wise, the northern half of Taiwan will see temperatures range between 19-25 degrees Celsius throughout Sunday. The southern half will meanwhile experience high day-night temperature gaps, with lows of 21-23 degrees and highs reaching 29-31 degrees, CWA data showed.

Independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) on Sunday forecast sporadic rains in regions north of Taoyuan, Yilan County, Hualien County and mountainous regions north of Nantou County for Sunday, with other parts of the country seeing cloudy to sunny skies.

During the daytime on Monday, the north coast, Yilan and Hualien may see sporadic showers while other regions will be mostly cloudy to sunny. Chances of rain will increase into the night and on Tuesday, when rain is forecast throughout northern Taiwan, Wu said.

Another wave of northeasterly winds is forecast to affect Taiwan from Wednesday to Saturday, bringing rain to the northern and eastern parts of the island, while temperatures will drop slightly in the north.

As the mercury in northern Taiwan will gradually rise starting Thursday, central and southern Taiwan will experience high day-night temperature differences, he said.

Meanwhile on Sunday, the Ministry of Environment said it detected "orange alert" level air quality for outlying Matsu, which is unhealthy for sensitive groups including children, the elderly, and people with cardiovascular or respiratory conditions.

The ministry also warned that northern Taiwan may experience orange level air quality for short periods of time throughout the day.