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Taipei -- Tropical Storm Tembin (天枰) has been upgraded to a typhoon and is likely to turn northwest toward Taiwan today, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday.

If the typhoon turns as forecast, its eye may make landfall on Taiwan's east coast Thursday, according to the weather bureau.

As of 8 a.m., the eye of Tembin was located 620 kilometers southeast of Eluanbi, off the southernmost tip of Taiwan, moving at a speed of 8 km per hour in a northerly direction.

Tembin, the 14th storm of the Pacific typhoon season, is packing winds of 119 kph, with gusts of up to 155 kph, and has a radius of 150 km, the bureau said.

The typhoon is likely to move toward Taiwan on a northwesterly track Tuesday and take a more westerly turn Wednesday, the bureau said.

A sea warning for Tembin is likely to be issued Tuesday morning and areas around Taiwan should be prepared for strong winds and heavy rain Wednesday to Friday, the bureau warned.

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Meanwhile, a tropical depression that formed near Guam on Sunday was still located 2,300 km from Taiwan as of 8 a.m. Monday and it may strengthen into a tropical storm over the next two days, the bureau said.

Tropical Storm Bolaven Forms, May Move Toward Taiwan

A tropical depression near Guam has been upgraded into Tropical Storm Bolaven (布拉萬) and may move toward Taiwan on a west-northwesterly track over the next few days, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday.

Bolaven formed a day after Typhoon Tembin developed at sea east of Luzon near the northern Philippines.

As of 2 p.m. Monday, Bolaven, the 15th storm of the Pacific typhoon season, was centered 2,200 kilometers southeast of Taiwan near Guam, according to the bureau's latest statistics.

It is moving at a speed of 9 km per hour, packing winds of 65 kph, with gusts of up to 90 kph and a radius of 100 km.

The bureau said it remains to be seen what kind of influence the storm will have on Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Typhoon Tembin continues its northerly path toward the sea east of Taiwan. It is forecast to turn northwest toward Taiwan on Tuesday.

As of 2 p.m. Monday, the eye of Tembin was located 590 km southeast of Eluanbi on Taiwan's southern tip, moving in a northerly direction at a speed of 11 kph.

It was packing winds of 144 kph, with gusts reaching 180 kph, said the bureau.

As the storm and typhoon are located 1,700 km apart from each other, there are currently no signs that they will interact with each other, it said.

Also on Monday, the Taipei City Department of Health called on the public to prepare for the typhoon by stocking up on food and water supplies to last for three days.

Bolaven is the Laotian word for plateau or mesa, while Tembin is Japanese for the constellation Libra