Forecasters with the Central Weather Bureau warned of possible flash floods saying Jangmi, the sixth and biggest storm to hit Taiwan this year, could dump up to 56 inches of rain in some areas. Winds gusts have hit 140 miles per hour, the highest level the bureau’s equipment can measure. Saturday evening a hurricane hunter aircraft reported wind’s in excess 180 mph. Many weather experts are comparing Jangmi to a strong Cat. 4 Hurricane.

Jangmi. meaning “Rose” in Korean, made landfall in Northeastern llan county around 0740 GMT, the Central Weather Bureau said. Huge mud slides have been reported, tens of thousands of homes have lost power, and transportation as a whole has come to a halt, the usually bustling capital of Taipei is said to be eerily quiet with only a few cars on the streets.

The Disaster Relief Center said dozens of villagers were evacuated from the scenic mountain resort of Lushan in central Taiwan, where all 20 hotels were ordered closed. The area was badly damaged when Typhoon Sinlaku hit two weeks ago, with massive mudslides destroying at least three hotels. 

For the first time in seventeen years a Hurricane Watch is in effect for the Coast of Maine from Stonington eastword to Eastport. A Hurricane watch is also in effect for Southwestern Nova Scotia Canada. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect along the Coast of Maine from Port Clyde eastword to Eastport. A Tropical Storm Warning is also in effect for Southern New Brunswick Canada and Southwestern Nova Scotia.

Kyle will most likely lose it’s punch as it moves over the much cooler water’s of the North Atlantic. Landfall is expected late Sunday or early Monday, and if Kyle stays on it’s current course it will come on shore near the boarder of Maine and Nova Scotia. The heavy rain that Kyle will bring to Maine is of concern due to the fact that T.S. Hannah left the area with an abundance of rain earlier this month and the ground won’t take much more without flooding concerns. For an area that is used to bracing for Northeaster storms they know how to prepare for harsh conditions. 

Predicted to be the most powerful Typhoon to hit Taiwan this year Jangmi is packing winds of 118 miles per hour (191 kilometers per hour) and is moving northwest  at 12 mph (20kph). The Central Weather Bureau urged residents in eastern and northern Taiwan on Saturday to beware of strong winds and heavy rains being whipped up by Typhoon Jangmi. The Bureau says that as of 12:15 p.m. (0415 GMT) Saturday, Jangmi was about 341 miles (550 kilometers) east of Taiwan’s southern tip. The bureau warn that if Jangmi stays on it’s current course, it will strike Taiwan early Monday morning. 

Looks like a perfect weekend to head for the High Country and check-out the Fall color’s. With the forecast high temperature’s in the low to mid 80’s and the overnight lows forecast near 50 you have one more weekend to enjoy those outdoor activity’s you love. Keep in mind this is Colorado and it could be wet and chilly next weekend. Having said that the early part of next week looks a bit cooler with the high temp’s in the mid 70’s and the overnight low’s in the mid 40’s still very pleasant. The forecast for the end of next week looks warm and dry but we all know that trying to forecast the weather that far ahead in Colorado is just a guess.

I know we have talked in past weeks of it feeling like fall and it has, but the official beginning of Fall is Monday at 9:45 am MDT/15:45 UTC. We all know that in Colorado you can not put a date and a time on any weather event, the official start of Fall simply means now we have more dark than light, funny how that sneaks up on us. Winter begins officially December 21st and we all know we will have winter weather long before that.

Now that we have the official stuff out of the way, it looks like the week ahead should be very enjoyable with high temperature’s in the lower 80 degree range, with the only exception being Tuesday with a high in the mid to upper 70’s. The overnight lows will be in the mid to upper 40’s, and virtually no moisture in the forecast for the week. I know that sounds like a great forecast but we really could use some rain here and in the Foothills where things are getting dry again and it’s not to late for Wildfire’s.

With high temperature’s forecast to be near 80 both Saturday and Sunday and a 10% chance of isolated thunderstorms after 3pm Saturday increasing to 20% Sunday afternoon it looks like a weekend that is going to be hard to beat. So you can plan just about any activity with out the weather being an issue unless you were planning a snow sking trip.

In just a few short months we will be complaining about the cold and the snow so enjoy this great weather. The only problem with this weekend is that it is only two days long.

Some Drizzle and fog hanging around early Sunday morning but should be moving out giving way to cloudy skies, temperature’s will be cool today with highs in the mid to upper 60’s. Cloud cover should be lifting and clearing out late morning or early afternoon. If the cloud cover hangs around this afternoon the high temp’s will be a few degrees cooler. It should be a great afternoon for those outdoor activity’s, looks like a great day for a game of touch football or a trip to the park/playground with the kid’s.

Monday sets the stage for a warmer-drier trend through mid-week with high temp’s in the upper 70’s and lower 80’s Monday thru Wednesday. Sunny skies will be prevalent for the same time frame. 

First in Honor and Remembrance of the Horrific events of September 11, 2001. Do you remember where you were and what you were doing when you heard the new’s? And do you remember how you felt? When you have a few minutes today take time to remember and pray for the survivors and the family’s of those that perished on that dreadful day. Also it is a day to display your flag or if you have a flag pole you can lower your flag to half staff. Thank You.

Thursday’s weather what a change from Wednesday when it was warm and very pleasant. Today dawn broke with cloud cover and a chill in the air. The rest of the day will remain cloudy with a chance of showers before noon, then the chance of showers and thunderstorm’s increases to 40% with a forecast high of 61degree’s. So if you have chore’s to do outside or errand’s to run you may like to get done before 2:00 pm the chance of precipitation increases to 70% with a forecast low of 47 degrees.

Friday will bring much the same weather as Thursday with chance of thunderstorms at 70% and a high temp. of 63 and showers throughout the day.

Bad news for Cuba could be good news for the U.S. in that IKE’s interaction with land could weaken IKE, the amount of time IKE spends over land remains to be seen but the weaker it is when it moves back over the warm Gulf waters the better. Haiti while still trying to recover from the devastation of Gustav will be dealing with IKE this morning. 

Evacuation of the Florida Keys began yesterday morning (Saturday) at 8 a.m. when visitors were told to leave, the residents begin there evacuation this morning at 8 a.m. The danger for the Keys and Southern Florida has changed somewhat now that it appears IKE will not be making a direct hit, But it is still a very dangerous storm and will have very high winds, heavy rain and storm surge that can be very destructive. Keys officials are concerned that residents will not heed the warning and will stay.

Once IKE moves back over the warm water’s of the Gulf of Mexico it is expected to show steady intensification in day’s 4 and 5. The eye’s all along the Gulf coast will be watching IKE while still cleaning up from Gustav.

You will see the sun again Saturday and the temps will warm to near 75 degrees, but the warm up will be short lived as a cold front will be moving across northern Colorado this evening and will be followed by a layer of stratus clouds much like Friday.  These clouds will hang around through Monday but temps should not be quite as chilly as Friday, with forecasts calling for a high in the mid 60’s Sunday and near 60 on Monday. Long term, drier and warmer conditions return Tuesday and Wednesday as an upper level ridge forms over the region, and will warm temps to the upper 70’s Tuesday and the lower 80’s on Wednesday with a slight chance of afternoon showers both days.