As part of Zhejiang's preparations for Typhoon Chan-Hom, the local government has called its ships back to port and evacuated over 865,000 residents. (Photo : Reuters)
As super typhoon Chan-Hom is expected to head toward the east coast, making a landfall between the Fujian and Zhejiang provinces, over 865,000 residents of the latter region were evacuated to keep them safe from torrential winds and rains.
Since Friday, a number of cities have already been reporting strong gales and heavy rains, Zhejiang's flood, typhoon and drought headquarters stated.
As of 10 p.m. of the same day, a total of 28,764 ships have been recalled to port due to the harsh weather condition.
The super typhoon has its center located 235 kilometers southeast of the province in the East China Sea. It is moving at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour.
It is expected to make a landfall between Zhejiang province's Rui'an and Zhoushan, with winds of up to 209 kilometers per hour.
According to the National Meteorological Center, Chan-Hom could be the strongest to land in the province since 1949. On Friday, it has issued a red alert, its highest.
So far, the strongest to hit Zhejiang was the 2006 Typhoon Saomai, traveling with a speed of 200 to 220 kilometers per hour and claiming a total of 483 lives.
The strength of Chan-Hom, the second typhoon to land on China in two days, may gradually wane after the landfall, the meteorological center remarked.
The super typhoon is expected to move north and traverse Zhejiang, Shanghai and southeast Jiangsu through Sunday afternoon. Heavy rain and winds may also be experienced in neighboring provinces such as Fujian and Anhui.
Liu Yumin, a village resident from Huagang, said "the typhoon seems very powerful," adding that they have "already sealed all [their] windows and doors, and have stocked up on food."
Meanwhile, the city government of Wenzhou revealed that its 53,000 flood control staff are on stand-by over the weekend.
China's Ministry of Civil Affairs also advised the residents to buy and store day-to-day necessities good for one to three days. It also required its subdepartments to publish up-to-date warnings and be alert round-the-clock.
