Typhoon Bavi, the strongest storm to hit the eastern coast of mainland China this year, brought heavy rain, strong winds, flooding and landslides after making landfall in Zhejiang province on Sunday. More than 2.8 million people were evacuated to safety ahead of the storm.
Bavi made landfall in Yuhuan late on Saturday before a second landfall in nearby Yueqing around midnight. It weakened to a tropical storm on Sunday but is expected to bring prolonged heavy rain across eastern and northern China.
In Yueqing, more than 1,300 trees fell, streets were flooded and a landslide blocked a mountain road. Emergency crews cleared debris and reopened roads.
"The winds were very strong," Yueqing resident Li Liangxing told Reuters. "We could hear roof tiles and tree branches falling. Of course we were scared, but we live by the sea, so we're used to it."
Emergency crews on Sunday deployed excavators and chainsaws to clear waterlogged streets littered with fallen trees.
In the city's mountainous north, footage aired by CCTV showed a landslide that sent large boulders tumbling onto a mountain road, while swollen river waters submerged nearby trees.
In Kanmen, a coastal fishing town in Yuhuan, 72-year-old parcel shop owner Lin Yongjin was counting the cost of Bavi.
His shop, which faces the sea, bore the brunt of the storm. Metal frames supporting the entrance canopy had collapsed, and a window in a neighbouring building had been blown out. Lin estimated the typhoon had caused more than 6,000 yuan ($885) in damage.
"After it came ashore, there was nothing we could do. Rainwater poured into the house. We spent the whole night dealing with it and didn't get to sleep until after 5 a.m.," he said.
Bavi passed northern Taiwan on Saturday, bringing strong winds and driving rain across much of the island. The storm dumped nearly 80 cm (31 inches) of rain in one area in the northern county of Miaoli. Taiwan's fire department said on Sunday that there were 134 people injured. The transport ministry said 137 international flights had been cancelled on Sunday, along with 62 domestic trips.
In eastern China, train services were suspended in Hangzhou at two major stations and 327 flights were cancelled at Xiaoshan International Airport.
In neighbouring Shanghai, a total of 1,620 train trips and 684 flights were cancelled, state-backed The Paper reported.
Bavi moved into Anhui province on Sunday and is forecast to turn northeast towards the Yellow Sea by Tuesday.
Heavy to torrential rain is expected across Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Liaoning and Jilin, increasing the risk of flooding in already saturated areas. In Hebei, rescue teams used inflatable boats to reach people stranded by floodwaters.
Experts warned that despite weakening, Bavi could continue generating dangerous weather hundreds of kilometres inland.
Scientists have warned China could face more extreme weather this year with the expected emergence of the El Nino weather pattern, which can drive up temperatures and shift typhoon tracks westward toward the country's coast.
Shipping traffic through the key Gulf waterways of Bab el-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz remained largely unchanged at the start of the week, shippin...
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 4th of August, covering the latest developments....
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung urged authorities to increase support for people affected by a record heatwave, as the death toll reached 16....
U.S. President Donald Trump says Iran has a "last chance" to sign what he described as "a good document", claiming talks are continuing at Tehran's request with backing from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.
U.S. President Donald Trump said late on Saturday he would hold off on a fresh attack on Iran as long as a deal could be reached quickly to halt Iran's nuclear ambitions and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Two firefighting helicopters collided while battling a major wildfire in Greece on Sunday, killing two crew members as emergency services continued efforts to contain fires fuelled by extreme heat and dry conditions across Europe.
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said wildfires that swept across France were now under control. Authorities warned that risks remained as Greece and Spain continued battling active blazes across parts of Europe.
Indonesian rescue teams are searching for 28 people still unaccounted for, three days after a passenger ferry caught fire off the coast of Madura island.
Flash floods in Gansu Province in China's northwest last week killed 25 people and injured 23 more, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday, raising earlier death tolls.
Three firefighters have died as wildfires continue to burn across Greece, with Crete facing a second day of intense blazes driven by strong winds. The fires come as Europe battles destructive wildfires fuelled by extreme heat and drought.
An impending "super" El Niño is likely to inflict a combined $10 billion to $20 billion hit on affected African countries and trigger mass migration from hard-hit areas, the African Development Bank's (AfDB) top climate expert said.
Brazil has banned the production and sale of foie gras, the French delicacy made from fattened duck or goose liver. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva signed a law late Thursday aimed at ending force-feeding in the country's foie gras industry and stopping imports.
At least 82 people have died after heavy rain triggered devastating floods across northeastern India, Pakistan and Afghanistan this week, with widespread damage to homes, farmland and infrastructure.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment