A super typhoon ‘Yagi’ is sailing across the South China Sea in the Western Pacific Ocean. The powerful storm is heading for Hainan, the southernmost province of China, first and strikes mainland China later. The typhoon is centered in the South China Sea around 19.2°N and 115.5°E over the deep ocean surface. The super typhoon packed with winds in excess of 200 kmh is moving west-northwest and is likely to make a second landfall on Friday. Earlier, the storm had struck northern parts of the Philippines on 02nd September 2024.
Hainan Meteorological Service forecast the typhoon would make landfall on Friday, along the region from Qionghai in Hainan to Dianbai in neighbouring Guangdong province. It could be the strongest typhoon to hit Hainan in the past 10 years. The Hong Kong Observatory said, the typhoon with maximum sustained winds of 210 kmh, would skirt around 300 km southwest of the financial hub on Friday morning. School and work were suspended in parts of southern China as typhoon Yagi closed in on an island province with the potential to be the most powerful storm to hit the area in a decade.
The typhoon after striking Hainan will enter the Gulf of Tongking and then head for the third landfall over North Vietnam. As the typhoon weakens over land, it will track across Vietnam, and Laos and enter Myanmar on 09th/10th September. By this time, it may weaken to a well-marked low-pressure area. The remnant of this system may enter the North Bay of Bengal on the 10th/11th of September.
In the North Bay/ Head Bay, the remnants of the typhoon are likely to merge with a pre-existing low pressure in that area. Joining hands, it may intensify further and start impacting weather along the Indian coastline. The track and timelines, hereafter, will be forecast, a little later. The model accuracy generally degrades with a lead time of about 5 days and therefore, it is prudent to review the situation and comment upon the likely course.
Typhoons in the West Pacific Ocean and South China Sea have a strong bearing on the monsoon current over the Indian seas. Depending upon the situation, the monsoon activity, at times, may get retarded. However, the remnants of any storm entering the Bay of Bengal, always boost the monsoon stream and accentuate the rainfall activity. The developments need to be kept under observation for the next about 3 days.
Photo Courtesy: Windhub