Ferry service suspended as typhoon to hit southern Chinese province

HAIKOU -- South China's Hainan province issued an alert for a forthcoming typhoon Tuesday and suspended all ferry services from noon in Qiongzhou Strait.

The provincial meteorological administration said that a tropical depression had been formed as of 8 pm Monday in the northern waters of the South China Sea and was expected to upgrade to a typhoon in the next 24 hours.

The typhoon is projected to make landfall in the eastern coastal areas of Hainan between late Tuesday and early Wednesday. It will then pass through the island before heading for northern Vietnam.

The administration issued a blue alert for the typhoon, the lowest level in China's four-tier color-coded warning system and warned that the island will be hit by gales and heavy rain from Tuesday to Wednesday.

Ferry service have been halted as of noon in the Qiongzhou Strait and boats in northeastern waters of the South China Sea and around Hainan have been informed to return to harbors.