A low-pressure area located east of the Philippines is expected to develop into a tropical cyclone, meteorologists warn.
According to the Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (often referred to by its Portuguese initials SMG), the gathering storm will enter the central part of the South China Sea today. While its track is uncertain at present, the public is advised to monitor weather information.
The warning comes less than two weeks after Super Typhoon Yagi – the most powerful storm to hit southern China in a decade – brushed past Macao before making landfall on Hainan Island, killing four people. It then slammed into Vietnam and Myanmar, causing hundreds of fatalities through landslides and flooding.
[See more: Macao’s electricity network is being tested for its typhoon preparedness]
Researchers say that climate change will lead to more powerful and more frequent severe weather events, with a higher than usual number of typhoons expected to affect China this year.
Just yesterday, Shanghai was hit by its most powerful storm in 75 years, Typhoon Bebinca, which prompted the evacuation of 400,000 people and caused widespread disruption.
The SMG is forecasting wet and windy weather for Macao at the end of the week. In the meantime, a yellow hot weather alert remains in force.
