Guangdong braces for Typhoon Saola

Typhoon Saola is expected to make a landfall between Huidong county and Taishan city on Friday night or Saturday morning after its path adjustment, Guangdong meteorological department said on Friday morning.

Saola, classified as a super typhoon, is moving at 10 to 15 kilometers an hour as it approaches Guangdong coast from the sea surface 245 kilometers away from southeast direction of Hong Kong on Friday morning, meteorological department said.

Previously, meteorological department forecast Saola, the 9th typhoon this year, would strike the coast between Guangdong's Huilai and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Friday afternoon.

To brace for Saola that is expected to bring storms and gales to Guangdong coast, a total of 27,214 fishing vessels have all returned to shelters and 12,322 fishermen and offshore workers from ocean ranch fishing rafts have gone ashore as end of Thursday, when Guangdong's flood control, drought relief and anti-typhoon headquarters upgraded its anti-typhoon emergency response to Level 1 from Level 3 on Thursday afternoon, local authorities said.

Heavy downpours and strong gales accompanying Saola had already wreaked havoc in major cities on the coast of Guangdong in the previous days.

Nearly 4,000 trains operating in Guangdong province will suspend operations or make detours to ensure the safety of passengers between Thursday and Sunday, railway authorities said.

And 25 ferry services operating in Guangdong's coastal cities have been suspended starting Thursday. Ferry services linking Guangdong to Hong Kong have also fully suspended on Friday.

In Fengshun county administered by Meizhou city, a total of 447 residents had been evacuated and relocated after three mountain torrents were reported in the county on Wednesday.

Education departments in major cities, including Guangzhou and Shenzhen, that might be the hardest hit by Saola have asked their schools and kindergartens to postpone the start of the autumn semester while major outdoor construction sites to stop construction temporarily.

Meanwhile, relevant departments have asked residents and tourists to reduce their outdoor activities, particularly at beaches, low-lying areas, scenic spots, construction sites and under large billboards, and avoid walking along local coastal and river dikes to avoid accidents as red alerts, the highest level of the four-tier warning system, have been issued many districts in coastal cities.