Typhoon Nalgae inflicted little damage as it passed by Macao, but its arrival marked the first time that Signal No 8 has been hoisted in November in half a century.
The Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG) said that after entering the northern part of the South China Sea, the intensity of Nalgae gradually weakened, and its circulation had been “significantly” reduced. However, the predicted track was very close to Macao and even expected to pass directly over it.
At the same time, according to the forecast, the possibility of Nalgae bringing Force 8 winds to Macao could not be ruled out, which might have posed a threat to the city. Therefore, the weather station hoisted Signal No 8 based on meteorological risk considerations.
The SMG noted that Nalgae’s track was slightly more northward than predicted, eventually passing to the east of Macao and making landfall in Zhuhai. Therefore the area of Force 8 winds associated with the northeast side of Nalgae passed only a few kilometres away from the Macao peninsula.
As for the time difference between Hong Kong and Macao when their respective tropical signals were issued, the SMG pointed out that apart from the 60 kilometres distance between Hong Kong and Macao, “which resulted in a three-hour difference” in the timing of the tropical cyclone, it was also related to Nalgae’s moving speed, The Macau Post Daily reported.
