Parts of central, southern Taiwan remain under heavy rain advisories

Taipei, June 11 (CNA) The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Thursday maintained its heavy rain advisories for seven municipalities in central and southern Taiwan, effective through the evening.

The heavy rain advisories remained in place for Tainan, Kaohsiung and Chiayi cities and Chiayi County, as well as the mountainous areas of Taichung City and Nantou and Yunlin counties, according to the CWA, which cited vigorous convective cloud systems.

The advisories warned of the possibility of more than 80 millimeters of rainfall within 24 hours, or more than 40 mm within one hour.

People in those areas should beware of thunder, strong winds, rapidly rising stream levels, and possible flooding in low-lying regions, the CWA warned. In the mountainous areas of those regions, the public should stay alert to possible landslides and rockfalls, it said.

For the rest of the week, independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) said Thursday that a lingering weather front will hover over Taiwan, causing continued unstable weather nationwide.

The current front that is affecting southern Taiwan will start moving north on Friday, bringing strong atmospheric convection all across the country, he said, warning of extreme weather, including possible "disaster-level" rainfall.

On Saturday and Sunday, seasonal southwesterly winds and the lingering front will bring extreme weather conditions to windward locations in southwestern Taiwan, Wu said.

The rest of the country can expect lightning strikes, strong winds, and sudden showers on the weekend, he said, adding that temperatures will rise on those two days.

The front will move southward again on Monday and Tuesday, with strong atmospheric convection expected, then it will drift northward again, Wu said.

On Wednesday, the seasonal southwesterly winds will weaken, and the rain begin to ease around the country, he added.