2m evacuated as Typhoon Wipha nears

SHANGHAI: Two million residents of Shanghai, and Fujian and Zhejiang provinces were evacuated yesterday as the east coast prepared for the landing of potentially the most destructive typhoon in a decade.

Typhoon Wipha, packing winds of nearly 200 kph at its center, was about 300 km southeast of Wenling - a coastal city in Zhejiang - at 4 pm yesterday, and moving ashore at 25 kmh. It was expected to land in Zhejiang early this morning.

It is likely to maintain its momentum after making landfall, meteorological officials said.