The Central Weather Administration (CWA) provided updates that Typhoon Krathon has weakened but given its slow-moving pace, its impact may extend into the coming days.
As of 8 a.m., Wednesday, the typhoon was located 160 kilometers southwest of Kaohsiung. CWA warns that although the typhoon has weakened, its structure remains intact. With a radius of 220 km, the typhoon’s maximum sustained winds are now 173 kph and gusts have dropped to 209 kph.
The CWA expects that coupled with its slow movement, the typhoon’s impact on Taiwan will be prolonged, with landfall now expected to be delayed until Thursday. CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said that Krathon may further degrade to a moderate typhoon and could become a tropical depression once it makes landfall.
An extremely torrential rain advisory has been issued for mountainous areas in Pingtung and Taitung counties, warning that accumulated rainfall will exceed 500 millimeters in the next 24 hours. A heavy rain to torrential rain advisory has also been issued for Pingtung County, the Hengchun Peninsula, and the mountainous regions of Hualien, with expected rainfall of over 350 mm within the next 24 hours, or more than 200 mm of rainfall within three hours. A heavy rain to extremely heavy rain advisory was issued to the mountainous areas of Yilan and Hualien Counties, as well as in Tainan City, Kaohsiung City, Green Island, Lanyu, and Penghu County.