Taiwan issues sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong

Taipei, Nov. 10 (CNA) The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Monday issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong, effective from 5:30 p.m., predicting that the storm will make landfall in Taiwan on Wednesday.

A land warning is expected to be issued Tuesday morning, according to the agency.

As of 5 p.m. Monday, Fung-Wong was located about 490 kilometers south-southwest of Eluanbi, Taiwan's southernmost tip. It was moving west-northwest at 13 kph, with maximum sustained winds of up to 137 kph and gusts reaching 173 kph.

CWA forecaster Lin Ping-yu (林秉煜) said Fung-Wong has slightly strengthened in the past three hours and is expected to pose a threat to waters near Dongsha Island, the Bashi Channel and the southern Taiwan Strait, with a possible further increase in intensity.

The typhoon, combined with the effects of northeasterly winds, is expected to bring increasingly heavy rain Monday night and Tuesday to the Keelung north coast, Greater Taipei, eastern Taiwan, and the Hengchun Peninsula.

Extremely heavy to torrential rainfall is expected in mountainous areas of Greater Taipei and eastern Taiwan, and the CWA is likely to issue a land warning from Tuesday morning, Lin said.

Fung-Wong is forecast to approach and pass over Taiwan on Wednesday. Central and southern Taiwan, Hualien, Taitung, and Penghu may see scattered showers with the possibility of heavy or torrential rain, Lin added.

Northern Taiwan, Yilan, and outlying islands including Kinmen and Matsu are expected to experience brief showers.

Even after the typhoon moves away on Thursday, northern Taiwan may still see significant rainfall, according to Lin.

During the typhoon, strong gusts may occur in open coastal areas and offshore islands, with waves exceeding 3 meters along the coast. Waves could reach up to 6 meters in southern Taiwan, the Hengchun Peninsula, southeastern regions, and the outlying islands of Penghu, Lin added.

As the typhoon approaches, the Kinmen Harbor Bureau announced Monday that ferry services between Kinmen and the Chinese cities of Xiamen and Quanzhou will be suspended in both directions on Tuesday.