Typhoon Gaemi pummelled towns on China’s coastal Fujian province on Friday with heavy rains and strong winds.
Typhoon Gaemi, the most powerful storm to hit the country this year, began its trek into the populous interior.
Impact Of The Typhoon Gaemi
The storm has so far affected almost 6,30,000 people in China’s Fujian in this situation.
Xinhua news agency reported that almost half of those affected have had to relocate.
Typhoon Gaemi previously killed dozens of people as it swept through Taiwan and worsened seasonal rains in the Philippines.
Nature Of Typhoon Gaemi
Gaemi was packing winds of up to 100.8 kph (62.6 mph) near its centre.
It eased slightly from 118.8 kph logged on Thursday night when it landed in the Fujian city of Putian.
Gaemi has been downgraded to a tropical storm because of slower wind speeds.
Its vast cloud-bands however remain a flood risk.
Rivers in central China already elevated due to summer rains, are at risk.
President Xi Jinping Urges Cadres To Protect Lives
The Standing Committee of the Communist Party’s politburo, held a special meeting on flood control, hours ahead of the typhoon’s arrival.
President Xi Jinping who steered the meeting urged cadres across the country to protect lives.
The standing committee recommended measures to prevent breaches of major rivers and the collapse of large and key medium-sized reservoirs.
As many as 72 townships across Fujian recorded accumulated precipitation exceeding 250 mm (9.8 inches), local weather bureaus said.
Following this, Gaemi is expected to reach Jiangxi province, home to China’s largest freshwater lake, Poyang, by late Friday.
Forecast
Furthermore, forecasters warned as many as 10 provinces could be affected.
These include Henan, a province with a population of over 100 million in central China.
Henan’s meteorological bureau expects Gaemi to start ushering in rains on Friday night.
Gaemi’s impact is expected as far north as the provinces of Jilin and Liaoning, next week.
Impact On Jilin And Liaoning Provinces
Both these provinces are still grappling with overflowing rivers and waterlogged cities.
These provinces are affected due to a powerful cluster of summer storms a few days ago.
Scientists have warned that global warming is worsening tropical storms.
Tropical storms are becoming less frequent but much more intense, according to a report published on Friday.
Impact On Taiwanese Cities
On Thursday, Gaemi flooded several Taiwanese cities and towns.
Over 700 people were injured and seven killed in the floods caused by Gaemi.
It also resulted in sinking a freighter off the island’s coast.
The Taiwan government said that rescuers pulled nearly 1,000 people out of floodwater in inflatable boats.
Impact On The Philippines,
The storm killed 32 persons in the Philippines and the capital Manila declared a “state of calamity” after widespread flooding.
Consequently, a marine tanker carrying industrial fuel also sank in rough seas off the Philippines.
(With Inputs From Reuters)
