A monitor of the Korea Meteorological Administration shows the location of Typhoon Francisco as of 9 a.m. on Aug. 5, 2019. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 5 (Korea Bizwire) — The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Monday shifted to an emergency footing as Typhoon Francisco, the season’s eighth typhoon, is forecast to pass through the Korean Peninsula after landing on the country’s southern coast on Tuesday night, government officials said.
The anti-disaster agency affiliated with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced the launch of its emergency footing at 3 p.m. and is scheduled to step up its countermeasures depending on the impact of the approaching typhoon.
The agency has dispatched officials to cities and provinces expected to be affected by Typhoon Francisco to help local governments better cope with possible damage.
Minister of the Interior and Safety Chin Young presided over a meeting of crisis management-related ranking officials from the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, Cheong Wa Dae and 17 metropolitan cities and provinces to discuss the typhoon’s expected route and measures to minimize damage.
At the meeting, the government officials decided to step up monitoring of rivers, valleys, coasts and other vulnerable places, including steep hills, construction sites, underground roadways and riverside parking lots, and push to evacuate residents from hazardous areas.
According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), Typhoon Francisco was moving west at a speed of 36 kilometers per hour from the sea about 470 km south of Japan’s Osaka as of 9 a.m.
Francisco is classified as “small” with a central pressure of 985 hectopascals (hPa). Its maximum sustained wind speed near its center was 97 kph, or 27 meters per second.
The typhoon is forecast to reach the sea about 70 km southwest of Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, at around 9 p.m. Tuesday before landing on the southern coast later that night, KMA said.
It is expected to be about 90 km west of Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, at 9 a.m. Wednesday before exiting the peninsula via Sokcho, Gangwon Province, toward the East Sea Wednesday night.
KMA forecasters expect Francisco will lose strength as it approaches the peninsula due to relatively low water temperatures in the sea off the southern coast.
Rain will begin in the southern coast from noon Tuesday before spreading to other parts of the nation until early Wednesday. Rain will stop in most parts of the country Wednesday afternoon.
With the typhoon forecast to pass through the middle of the peninsula, the nation’s eastern areas will likely be hit harder by rain and strong wind, they noted.
More than 200 millimeters of rain is forecast for the southern coast and the eastern coast of Gangwon Province, while Seoul, Gyeonggi Province, South Chungcheong Province and the southwestern provinces of Jeolla will receive 10 to 60 milimeters of precipitation.
(Yonhap)
