UPDATE (October 15, 2017 at 1.04pm CST): The former tropical depression has been upgraded to a typhoon. A yellow typhoon warning was issued at 5am this morning for Shenzhen, and a blue typhoon warning is in effect for Guangzhou.
If you’ve been enjoying getting outside to savor the slightly cooler temperatures in the Pearl River Delta, you will be bummed to find out that this weekend may be an ‘inside' one, due to the anticipated arrival of a typhoon.
Currently a tropical depression referred to as T.D. 24W, the storm is on course to hit the northern Philippines this evening, according to AccuWeather meteorologist Adam Douty. Douty added that the depression could morph into a tropical storm by the time it arrives in the northern portion of the Southeast Asian archipelago.
If the current depression does become a tropical storm, it will receive the name Khanun – the Thai word for 'jackfruit.'
From the Philippines, the storm is expected to travel towards Hainan Island and southern Guangdong’s Leizhou Peninsula. It is also expected to affect northern Vietnam.
“The depression is expected to become a tropical storm or typhoon before moving into southern China or northern Vietnam from Sunday into Monday,” said Douty, according to an AccuWeather article on the storm. "Areas such as northern Vietnam into China’s Hainan Island and the Leizhou Peninsula will be at greatest risk for impacts."
In both Guangzhou and Shenzhen, rain storms are anticipated Sunday and Monday, according to current weather predictions.
It has been almost a month since the last typhoon journeyed the western Pacific Ocean and this latest tropical depression’s march towards the Philippines, China and Vietnam is happening late in the season (most western Pacific typhoons develop between May and October).
Surprisingly, more storms may also be on the way.
"The western Pacific Ocean should be quite active over the next two to perhaps three weeks," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Jason Nicholls. Douty added that they are anticipating at least one more tropical storm to form next week in either the South China or Philippine seas.
South China has seen one hell of a typhoon season this year, with Typhoon Hato slamming Guangdong’s Pearl River Delta region in late August, shuttering schools, killing well over a dozen people and causing transportation mayhem.
Hato was then followed by typhoons Pakhar and Mawar.
The 2017 Pacific typhoon season thus far
But now, the question on everyone’s mind: do we need to worry about the impending storm in Guangzhou and Shenzhen? Probably not, but it doesn’t hurt to keep an eye on the weather forecast over the coming days.
[Images via phys.org, AccuWeather, Wikipedia]
0 User Comments