Taiwan’s Typhoon ‘Lannie’ Could Become A Super Typhoon

Photo: Typhoon Maysak from satellite

Directly in the path of the major storm system called Talim (Philippine name: Lannie), is the nation of Taiwan. As the storm gains strength, meteorologists warn that the system has the potential to intensify to the point of becoming a super typhoon before making landfall.

China’s National Meteorological Center on Tuesday warned that Typhoon Talim could intensify and turn into a super typhoon as it churns towards Taiwan and Zhejiang and Fujian provinces on the Chinese mainland. On Tuesday morning, the eye of Talim was 646 miles southeast of Taiwan’s Yilan county, and with it, were winds of up to 33 meters a second, or 73 miles per hour. The gusts were partially responsible for this warning, but the storm will also be accompanied by heavy rains.

The storm system will then move northwest at a speed of 15 to 18 miles per hour towards the coast of Zhejiang and Fujian, making landfall late on Thursday or early Friday, according to China’s National Meteorological Center. From Tuesday to Wednesday, Talim will bring gales to the southern East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and waters east of Taiwan, as well as parts of the South China Sea.

The Fujian government initiated a Grade IV emergency response on Monday night, the lowest of a four-grade emergency response system. But that could change should the typhoon pick up strength. Talim is expected to hit north and northeast parts of Taiwan the hardest on Wednesday and into Thursday with heavy rains and strong gusts.

Late last month, Typhoon Hato pummeled Macau with winds of more than 124 mph and wreaked havoc in the nearby financial hub of Hong Kong. Some warn that Typhoon Hato could have been a super typhoon as well and may want it relabeled as such after its destruction. Typhoon Hato left 12 people dead, scores injured, and many more were without water and power for days in Asia’s biggest casino city.

There seems to be no shortage of natural disasters on earth right now.