China issues yellow alert for Typhoon Koinu

BEIJING - China's national observatory on Tuesday morning issued a yellow alert for Typhoon Koinu, the third most severe warning in its four-tier typhoon warning system, as the 14th typhoon of this year is expected to bring gales to southern and eastern parts of the country.

The typhoon, observed at 20.2 degrees north latitude and 125.2 degrees east longitude at 5 am on Tuesday, is expected to move northwest at a speed of 10 to 15 km per hour, the National Meteorological Center said.

It will make landfall somewhere along the coastal areas around the southern part of China's Taiwan Island, or it may pass Taiwan Island without making landfall and move west with intensity gradually decreasing from Wednesday evening to Thursday morning.

The center urged local authorities to prepare typhoon emergency response measures and remain on high alert for possible floods and geological disasters.