Typhoon Aere (2004)

] ) was a mid-season category two typhoon that brought severe damage to Taiwan and thePeople's republic of China. Aere is the Marshallese word for 'storm'.

Meteorological history

An area of convection developed approximately 250 miles east of Pohnpei late on August 13. By August 16, the disturbance had passed 40 miles north of Chuuk. It developed enough organization to be designated a tropical depression on August 19, about 400 miles west of Guam. From there, it moved northwest at 12 mph along the southwestern periphery of a mid-level steering ridge. The system reached tropical storm status on August 20, gaining the name Aere.

Aere subsequently crossed into the Philippine Area of Responsibility, and was assigned the name Marce. Tropical Storm Aere was upgraded to typhoon intensity on August 21, and its strength leveled off during August 21 and August 22. On August 23, the typhoon was briefly downgraded to a tropical storm due to vertical wind shear while located 200 miles south of Naha, Okinawa. Aere quickly regained typhoon status and maintained its intensity for the rest of August 23 and developed a 50-mile wide eye. The tropical cyclone reached its peak intensity of 85 kts (100 mph) late on August 24, when the pressure lowered to 955 mb.

As the storm crossed the northern tip of Taiwan, it began to weaken. Typhoon Aere turned west-southwestward on the August 25 and made its closest approach to Taipei, Taiwan, passing only 30 miles to the city's north. Aere turned southwestward later that day, a trajectory that carried the storm past Xiamen early the next day and close to Shantou later that day before weakening to tropical storm intensity. The remnants of Typhoon Aere remained a tropical depression until the August 31.

Preparations

Some 937,000 people were evacuated before the typhoon's arrival. The local government of Fuzhou ordered work to stop at all construction sites and schools and universities when the city was under their first Black Typhoon Signal in history. A Black Typhoon Signal, the most severe of their five grades, indicates that a tropical cyclone is affecting the district or is to affect the district within the next 12 hours with sustained wind of hurricane strength. The evacuation of 930,000 people from low-lying and coastal areas in China helped keep their death toll at zero.

Impact

In Taiwan, Matala in Miaoli County reported a significant 1,546 mm of rain between the 23rd and 25th. Early on September 25, six villages located in Gaoqiao Town, Yinzhou District, Ningbo City, were struck by a tornado triggered by Typhoon Aere. The tornado did cause some economic losses, but no casualties were reported.

Preliminary statistics indicated that the typhoon had caused 2.485 billion yuan of direct economic losses and was responsible for two deaths in Fujian province. Aere also affected 3,479,900 residents in 421 towns of 48 counties of 6 cities in Fujian, where three cities were flooded, 10,100 houses were toppled, 236 embankments and thousands of water conservancy facilities were damaged.

News sources to date indicate that Taiwan took the brunt of Typhoon Aere. Thirty-four people were killed as a result of the storm, and fifteen died as a mudslide buried a remote mountain village in the north of the island. Agricultural losses were estimated at 7.7 million New Taiwan dollars (US$313,000 in 2004, US$321,451 in 2005). Forty-three deaths in the Philippines were caused by heavy rains induced by the typhoon. Nearly 16,000 people were evacuated from homes engulfed in floodwaters. A swollen river near the northern province of Nueva Ecija blocked traffic on a main road and stranded hundreds of commuters overnight. Eight provinces in northern and central Luzon were most severely affected with 70% of the provinces under water at one point. [ [http://australiasevereweather.com/cyclones/2005/summ0408.htm Monthly Global Tropical Cyclone Summary August 2004 ] ]

Observations over land with Aere were numerous. In the Ryūkyū Islands, the lowest pressure observed was 960.9 mbar (hPa) at Ishigakijima, which received 314.5 mm of rainfall between the 23rd and 25th. Ishigakijima, Okinawa, spent as long as eight hours within Aere's eye, which was about 110 kilometers (67 miles) in diameter at the time. In China, the typhoon made four landfalls; one being in the mainland of Fujian Province, and two others were when passed over at least two of the Fujian islands, including Pingtan Dao (Fuzhou City) and Nanri Dao (Putian City). Fuding (located in Ningde City) reported the highest amount in Fujian province with 663 mm. Xiyang and Nanri received the highest wind gusts, with east-northeast winds of 98 mph (43.8 m/s) on the August 25 and northwest winds of 98 mph (43.8 m/s) early in the morning of the 25th. Lanyu, Taiwan, reported a wind gust from the west-southwest at 99 mph (44.1 m/s) on August 24.

Lack of retirement

Despite the severe damage caused by Typhoon Aere, the name was not retired and will be used again.

ee also

* Tropical cyclone
* List of tropical cyclones

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/3598078.stm BBC slideshow]

References