Macau's Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG) hoisted storm-warning Signal No. 3 at 1 p.m. today.
The weather station said in a statement that it expected Signal No. 3 to remain hoisted tonight. However, it also said that it expected the likelihood of the hoisting of Signal No. 8 to be "low". It had issued standby Signal No. 1 at 7 p.m. yesterday.
"The tropical depression south of the Pearl River Estuary continues to intensify, and its movement speed has been slow in the past few hours. It is forecast that the tropical depression will stay within a 150-km radius of Macau in the next 12 hours, and it will generally move towards the eastern coast of Guangdong. Affected by... the tropical depression, there will be occasional heavy showers and thunderstorms in Macau, with winds occasionally reaching Level 6 with gusts. Therefore, the Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No. 3 will remain in effect tonight, and the probability of issuing higher signals is low. The public are advised to pay close attention to the change in weather and the latest news about the storm. On the other hand, the possibility of flooding caused by a storm surge is low since the astronomical tide level is low these days. However, the public should still pay attention to the possibility of flooding caused by heavy rains," the bureau said in a statement at 5:30 p.m.
At 5 p.m. the tropical depression was located about 90 km south-southeast of Macau, the observatory said.
Signal No. 3 means 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," the weather station says on its website.
Signal No. 8 means that "a tropical cyclone continues to approach Macau. Winds with a sustained speed of 63 to 117 km/h are expected or blowing and gusts may exceed 180 km/h in Macau."
Macau's typhoon-warning signals comprise 1, 3, 8, 9, and 10. The latter indicates that the centre of a tropical cyclone is forecast to reach the "immediate approaches" of Macau. Winds with a sustained speed exceeding 118 km/h are expected or blowing in Macau, with "gusts of great intensity".
