Chinese authorities on the southern island of Hainan have evacuated thousands of people, closed schools and halted rail services ahead of the expected landfall of Typhoon Wutip later on Friday, state media said.
More than 16,000 people have been moved from “construction sites, low-lying flood-prone areas and regions at risk of flash floods”, Xinhua news agency said, while over 40,000 working on boats had been moved ashore.
Footage from state broadcaster CCTV showed palm trees in Hainan waving violently in the wind, while other trees had toppled onto deserted roads as workers raced to clear the debris amid pouring rain.
Other images published by CCTV showed China National Offshore Oil Corporation workers with backpacks and other luggage leaving a ship and waiting at the port to board buses.
Wutip is expected to bring torrential rain exceeding 100 millimetres across six cities and counties, as well as winds of up to 63 miles per hour (101 kmh), Xinhua said.
Hainan has stopped high-speed rail services and its southernmost city of Sanya closed schools and tourist sites, as well as suspending all flights at its airport.
Wutip, the first typhoon to make landfall in the country this year, formed over the South China Sea on Wednesday, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said.
It may make landfall again along the coast from western Guangdong to Guangxi on Saturday, maintaining “severe tropical storm intensity” before turning northeastward and gradually weakening, the CMA said.
Guangdong raised its emergency response level on Friday morning, preparing rescue vessels and more than 30 tugboats for potential emergencies, Xinhua said.
More than 49,000 fishing boats in the province have returned to ports, with 10,000 of their crew members coming ashore, it said.
See also: Tropical Cyclone Wutip: T1 storm signal to remain in place, Observatory to consider T3 Fri or Sat
China has endured spates of extreme weather events from searing heat and drought to downpours and floods for several summers running.
The country is the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter but also a renewable energy powerhouse, seeking to cut carbon dioxide emissions to net zero by 2060.
Torrential rains last August triggered by Typhoon Gaemi, which moved from the Philippines and Taiwan to make landfall in eastern China, killed at least 30 people and left dozens missing.
