Typhoon Kaemi struck the coast of East China's Fujian Province
yesterday afternoon, prompting the evacuation of more than 500,000
residents.
The typhoon which pummelled Taiwan overnight, causing widespread
disruption to daily life but not enormous damage packed winds of up
to 120 kilometers per hour as it landed at Weitou town of Jinjiang
city at 3:50 PM, the China Meteorological Administration
reported.
Meteorologists forecast that Kaemi the fifth typhoon of the year
would move northwest and bring torrential rains to Fujian, Guangdong, Jiangxi and Zhejiang
provinces in the next two days.
In anticipation of Kaemi's wrath, more than 435,000 people were
evacuated from Fujian, while another 80,000 were moved from their
homes in neighbouring Zhejiang Province.
The typhoon had earlier brushed past the Philippines, causing
heavy rain there.
The evacuees in Fujian include those working in fish farms on
the sea, fishermen and residents in low-lying areas, Xinhua News
Agency said.
About 44,000 fishing boats were ordered to return to harbour by
yesterday, while flights from Xiamen city were postponed or
cancelled.
Local authorities were advised to monitor the safety of people
living in makeshift shelters at coal mines and in mountainous areas
and to boost patrols along reservoirs and dams in preparation for
flooding.
Fujian is ready with 12,000 tents, 50,000 quilts, 80,000 items
of clothing and a five-day supply of food for 300,000 people,
Xinhua said.
Guangdong Province urged all fishing ships to return to local
shelters and ordered construction sites to stop work during
storms.
In Shantou alone, more than 2,700 ships have returned to
harbours, with all fishermen leaving the vessels by noon
yesterday.
Frequent storms and typhoons since June have resulted in heavy
casualties and huge losses.
The nation is still counting the dead and picking up the pieces
in the aftermath of Typhoon Bilis, which swept through five
provinces including Fujian less than two weeks ago.
It caused 612 deaths with 208 people missing, and led to the
evacuation of nearly 3 million people, according to figures from
the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
At least 29.6 million people in Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong,
Jiangxi and Hunan provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region
were affected. The total losses amounted to 26.6 billion yuan
(US$3.3 billion).
The Asian Development Bank has granted a US$200 million loan to
Central China's Hunan Province to deal with flood relief work,
Xinhua reported.
The province was the hardest hit by Bilis, and at least 346
people died in flooding over the past two weeks.
The loan will help strengthen flood control measures, especially
around Dongting Lake in the northern part of the province, the bank
said in a statement.
(China Daily July 26, 2006)