TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The radius of Typhoon Hinnamnor is likely to include parts of northeast Taiwan Saturday (Sept. 3) night as it expands and grows stronger into Sunday (Sept. 4) morning, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB).
The first typhoon to approach Taiwan in 2022 had arrived at a location 360 kilometers east-southeast of Taipei City as of 4 p.m. Saturday. It was moving north at a speed of 16 kph but was expected to hit northeast Taiwan later than first predicted, forecasters said.
The threat to New Taipei City, Keelung City, and Yilan County was likely to increase Saturday evening amid gusts of up to 209 kph and maximum sustained winds of 173 kph. Landslides in the mountainous Nanzhuang area of Miaoli County made roads completely impassable, while many shops in popular weekend tourist destinations such as Tamsui were closed, TTV reported.
Schools and offices were closed Saturday afternoon in Jianshi and Wufeng, two mountainous areas of Hsinchu County, and most of the day in four districts of New Taipei City, Ruifang, Pingxi, Shuangxi and Gongliao. Taoyuan City’s Fuxing District said its offices and schools would remain closed Sunday. Updates about closures can be found at the website of the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration.
The CWB warned that heavy rain in the north of the country would last into Sunday afternoon, CNA reported. The land warnings issued Saturday morning were expected to end during Sunday afternoon. Forecasters predicted the eye of the typhoon would be situated 350 km northeast of Taipei by 2 p.m. Sunday, with rain subsiding during the afternoon, followed by a lifting of sea warnings in the evening.
