Typhoon batters Fuzhou
A total of 580,000 people have been evacuated as typhoon Maria stormed into southeastern China on Wednesday, paralyzing railway and air transportation in some areas, authorities said.
The typhoon, the eighth in China this year, made landfall about 9 am on Wednesday in Lianjiang county, Fujian province, bringing gales of up to 151 kilometers per hour at its center. All those evacuated are from Fujian and neighboring Zhejiang province, according to the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.
Maria is the first typhoon this year to trigger a red alert from the National Meteorological Center, the highest in China's four-tier system for severe weather.
As of 4 pm, the typhoon caused a direct economic loss of at least 490 million yuan ($73.4 million).
The strong gales uprooted many trees, broke fishing boats and caused hazards on roads in Lianjiang, a fishing county. Chen Zuliang, a member of the county's flood control office, said that more than 8,000 residents had been evacuated in the county.
Fujian ordered all fishing boats to return to harbor by noon on Tuesday and workers at offshore fish farms were required to return to land by 6 pm.