Typhoon to hit Korea Tuesday night

Typhoon Francisco, the eighth typhoon of the season, is forecast to land on Korea’s southern coast on Tuesday night, the weather agency said Sunday.

The typhoon was moving northwest at a speed of 25 kilometers per hour (16 miles per hour) from about 1,310 kilometers (814 miles) east-southeast of Kagoshima, Japan, as of 9 a.m., the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said.

Francisco was classified as “small” with a central pressure of 990 hectopascals (hPa). The maximum sustained wind speed near its center was 86 kilometers per hour.

The tropical storm is expected to be about 560 kilometers east-northeast of Kagoshima at 9 a.m. Monday, about 140 kilometers northwest of Kagoshima at 9 a.m. Tuesday and to land on Korea’s southern coast at night. It is then forecasted to be about 70 kilometers north-northeast of the southwestern city of Jeonju at about 9 a.m. Wednesday before exiting the peninsula toward the East Sea near Sokcho, Gangwon, according to weather officials. However, the KMA said Francisco could be somewhat weakened by relatively lower water temperatures in the ocean.

Yonhap