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| An official at the Korea Meteorological Administration examines the movement of the super typhoon Hinnamnor at the administration's office in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday. Hinnamnor, which is the strongest tropical storm this year so far, is expected to hit the southern island of Jeju by next Tuesday, according to the state weather agency. Yonhap |
By Lee Hyo-jin
Typhoon Hinnamnor, the strongest tropical storm this year so far, is expected to hit the southern regions of the Korean Peninsula early next week, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), Thursday.
Hinnamnor, the 11th typhoon of this season, was traveling at a speed of 27 kilometers per hour over waters some 360 kilometers southwest of Okinawa, Japan, as of 3 a.m. Thursday, bringing powerful gusts to the area, the KMA said.
It is expected to move southwest to the waters south-southwest of Okinawa on Friday, after switching its course to veer north and approach the sea 70 kilometers south of Jeju Island by next Tuesday.
The KMA predicted that the entire island of Jeju to come under direct influence of the super typhoon by Monday afternoon due to its huge size. After landing on the Korean Peninsula, the storm will travel at a speed of 21 kilometers per hour and pass through within a day.
But the state weather agency noted that it is yet unclear how much impact Hinnamnor would have on the nation's central regions, as the exact route and strength of the cyclone may change as it moves northward, adding that it will be able to give more accurate forecasts by Friday.
The tropical storm currently has a central pressure of 915 hectopascals with winds reaching up to 55 meters per second, qualifying as a "super strong" typhoon, the highest level in the KMA's four-tier system.
It is the strongest storm of 2022 based on the maximum sustained wind speed recorded so far, according to the U.S. Joint Typhoon Warning Center.
Its current size is similar to Typhoon Maemi, which wreaked havoc across the country in September 2003. It swept the nation with a central pressure of 954 hectopascals and a maximum wind speed of 60 meters per second, killing 117 people, leaving 13 missing and causing over 4.2 trillion won in damage.
By the time Hinnamnor reaches Jeju, it may lose some of its strength, according to the KMA.
Its atmospheric pressure may grow to reach 940 hectopascals, but its maximum wind speed is expected to drop to 47 meters per second, bringing it one notch down to a "very strong" typhoon. But still, if winds blow at speeds of between 40 to 60 meters per second, people cannot walk around and large stones can be blown away.
Jeju Island saw heavy precipitation starting Thursday afternoon due to the influence of the typhoon.
"There will be a significant amount of rainfall on Jeju. It will see over 30 millimeters of rain per hour coupled with wind gusts, thunder and lightning," a KMA official said earlier in the day.
The super typhoon comes less than a month after the nation was battered by a historical downpour, which triggered mass flooding across Seoul and its surrounding areas. The torrential rainfall between Aug. 8 and 9 resulted in at least 10 deaths, as well as major damage to thousands of homes, shops, cars and farmlands.
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