File photo
Taipei: People in northern Taiwan sweltered through high temperatures on Wednesday, with the capital Taipei enduring its hottest day on record for the month in May, the weather agency said.
Temperatures are often high in late May when seasonal southwesterly winds push up the mercury, Zeng Zhao-cheng, a forecaster at the Central Weather Administration, told AFP.
Winds sweeping over the Linkou and Taoyuan plateaus southwest of Taipei heat up as they descend on the heavily populated region.
"During the plum rain season, we frequently get this kind of southwesterly wind pattern," Zeng said.
"So this (weather) pattern isn't particularly rare, it's just that this time it broke the record."
In Taipei, temperatures reached 38.3C on Wednesday afternoon, the highest since the previous record on May 28, 2021.
The mercury hit 37.3C in the nearby city of Keelung, equalling the record set on May 25, 2007.
Temperatures are forecast to start cooling from Thursday.
