Seasonal winds ease, western Taiwan highs to hit 34°C Saturday

Taipei, Sept. 11 (CNA) As seasonal northeasterly winds are forecast to weaken, daytime temperatures in western Taiwan are expected to reach as high as 34 degrees Celsius on Saturday, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA).

CWA forecaster Chang Cheng-chuan (張承傳) told CNA that Taiwan will come under the influence of warmer easterly winds on Saturday, with daytime highs expected to reach 32-34 degrees in western Taiwan and 30-31 degrees in the east before falling to 24-25 degrees at night.

Chang said cloudy to sunny skies are forecast across most of Taiwan Saturday, although brief showers are possible in the greater Taipei area, Keelung and along the north coast, as well as in eastern Taiwan and the Hengchun Peninsula in the south.

Rainfall is expected to decrease further on Sunday, Chang said.

Seasonal northeasterly winds are expected to strengthen again from Monday through Wednesday, bringing more rain to windward areas, with showers likely in northern and eastern Taiwan and the Hengchun Peninsula, Chang said. Cloudy to sunny skies are expected to prevail in central and southern Taiwan, with only brief afternoon showers, Chang added.

Daytime highs from Monday to Wednesday are expected to reach 28-30 degrees in northern Taiwan and 30-31 degrees elsewhere before falling to 24-25 degrees at night, he said.

From Thursday to Friday, the seasonal winds are likely to weaken again, with temperature highs forecast to top 30 degrees in northern Taiwan, Chang said.

Chang said a tropical system could develop near Guam in the latter half of next week.

Various weather forecasting models indicate conditions could be favorable for the system to develop further, but it is still far from Taiwan, and further observation is needed, he said.