Deadly typhoon
At least 14 killed in Fujian as second typhoon bears down
At least 14 killed in Fujian province, China.
BEIJING: Typhoon Meranti left at least 14 people dead and 14 others missing in China and an ancient bridge destroyed as it wreaked havoc on the country’s eastern coast, the government said.
The storm, described by the official Xinhua news agency as the world’s strongest typhoon this year and the worst to hit Fujian province since records began in 1949, had killed seven people by Friday morning, the civil affairs ministry said in a statement.
Some 331,000 people were forced to relocate and direct economic losses of 1.7 billion yuan (RM1bil) were estimated in the province, according to the local government Friday.
The typhoon, which had earlier skirted the southern tip of Taiwan, made landfall in Xiamen early on Thursday packing winds of around 170kph and bringing downpours across the province,
But Taiwan has not entirely escaped disaster. Yesterday, authorities in Taiwan upgraded the warning for storms to “orange” as Typhoon Malakas follows hot on the heels of Meranti as it approaches Taiwan’s east coast.
Malakas, the 16th typhoon in 2016, will also affect the coasts of Zhejiang and Fujian provinces between last night and noon today, China’s National Marine Environmental Forecasting Center (CNMEFC) said in a statement.
Flooding destroyed an 871-yearold bridge that was a protected heritage site in Yongchun county, Xinhua reported on Friday.
At one point more than 3.2 million homes had their electricity cut off and water supplies for many communities in Xiamen were disrupted, it added.
Meranti weakened to a tropical depression on Friday.
Malakas, observed 530km off Taiwan’s east coast at one time on Friday, brought winds of up to 180kph as it moved northwest and is expected to enter the East China Sea soon, the National Meteorological Center said.
Moreover, CNMEFC maintained an orange warning for ocean waves caused by Malakas as it is expected to whip up waves from 7m to 11m off Taiwan’s east coast, southern East China Sea and nearby Diaoyu Islands from Friday. Waves up to 2.5m to 3.8m are also expected in the coastal regions of southern Zhejiang and northern Fujian, it said.
Coastal regions in Fujian, Guangdong and Shanghai saw storms starting from yesterday and ships operating in related waters were told to stay clear of the area, according to the document.
China’s State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has also activated a level III emergency response to cope with Malakas.
The headquarters urged local authorities in eastern China to take precautions and dispatched five work teams to Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian provinces as well as Shanghai to prepare for aid and relief.