Typhoon makes landfall in China, downgraded to severe tropical storm

BEIJING: Typhoon Bavi was downgraded to a severe tropical storm on Sunday after making landfall in eastern China, where authorities had evacuated nearly two million people in its path.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Before reaching China, the storm lashed northern Taiwan and Japan’s remote southwestern islands, toppling trees and leaving tens of thousands without power.

Extreme weather already wreaked havoc on southern and central China in the past week, with storms leaving at least 39 dead and causing dozens of rivers to overflow and a reservoir to burst.

Bavi first made landfall at around 11:20 pm on Saturday (1520 GMT) in Zhejiang province with winds of 144 kilometres (90 miles) an hour, state news agency Xinhua said, quoting the provincial meteorological observatory.

“The core impact zone experienced fierce winds and heavy rain, with rapid runoff forming on the ground and roadside trees being uprooted,” national TV station CCTV reported as Bavi struck the city of Yuhuan.

It then hit Yueqing city, where CCTV said firefighters, rescue workers and municipal employees were clearing “more than 1,300 trees” that had fallen or been uprooted.

The eye of the storm had moved near the Zhejiang provincial capital Hangzhou at around 10 am (0200 GMT) on Sunday with force 10 winds of around 108 kmh, the China Weather Administration said.

Zhejiang provincial officials forecast torrential rain in coastal regions and the possibility of flash floods, Xinhua said, warning of transport disruptions, rivers overflowing and farmland being inundated.

Around 1.72 million people had been evacuated to safe places by Saturday, Xinhua said.