Jangmi becomes a Super Typhoon by Darren Bett
The Taiwanese government issued land and sea warnings on Saturday as Typhoon Jangmi strengthened into a Super Typhoon. As of 0200 GMT Saturday, Jangmi was 373 miles (600km) southeast of Taiwan, packing sustained winds of 114mph (184kph).
According to The Joint Typhoon Warning Centre (JTWC), a typhoon reaches super typhoon status once the wind speed exceeds 150mph (241kph); equivalent to a strong category 4 storm.
Jangmi is strong, and is slowly tracking south of Taiwan through the weekend. It is then forecast to turn north, and follow the coast of China’s Fujian province, potentially bringing heavy rain to Taiwan until Tuesday.
Typhoons regularly hit China, Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines, gaining strength over the warm waters of the Pacific or China Sea. Jangmi is the 15th typhoon to form this year, following on from Hagupit which brought torrential rain to China earlier in the month.
