Macau’s Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG) said in a statement this afternoon that it is considering to lower Tropical Cyclone Signal No.8 to No.3 between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. today.
“Locally, winds are expected to weaken gradually,” the observatory said.
Signal No.3 indicates, according to the SMG website, that “under the influence of a tropical cyclone, winds with a sustained speed of 41 to 62 km/h are expected or blowing, and gusts may exceed 110 km/h in Macau.”
According to the statement issued at 6 p.m., “Typhoon ‘Wipha’ is currently about 100 km away from Macau and continues to move westward, heading toward the western coast of Guangdong. It will gradually move away from Macau; therefore, the probability of issuing Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No.3 between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. tonight is high,” the statement.
However, the statement warned, under the influence of the outer rainband of “Wipha”, there will still be strong winds, heavy showers, and thunderstorms in Macau tonight, with the wind strength intermittently reaching level 7 to 8.
As the weather remains unstable, the public are advised to pay close attention to the latest weather information, the bureau said.
The bureau had hoisted Signal No.8 at 4 a.m., Signal No.9 at 11 a.m., Signal No.10 at 12:30 p.m. (Macau’s highest tropical cyclone warning signal of its five-level warning system) today. Signal No.10 was lowered to Signal No.8 at 5 p.m.
As of 7 p.m., no serious injuries or major damage had been reported.
Meanwhile, Macau’s Cross-border Industrial Park, Qingmao and Barrier Gate land border checkpoints reopened at 5 p.m.
Official sources said that ferry, public bus and other types of public transport services were set to be gradually resumed after the lowering of Signal No.8 tonight. The cross-delta Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) is also slated to reopen to vehicular traffic later tonight, the sources said.
The authorities’ typhoon disaster prevention and mitigation measures were overseen by Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai. "Wipha" was the first typhoon to impact Macau since Sam assumed the leadership of the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) last December.
Meanwhile, the observatory predicted minor flooding in the Macau Peninsula's low-lying areas close to the Inner Harbour waterfront tonight, reaching less than 0.5 metre. Macau has been affected by particularly heavy rainfall since the late afternoon.
