Central Chinese cities suspend class as Typhoon Bebinca nears

ZHENGZHOU -- Primary and middle schools as well as kindergartens in the cities of Kaifeng and Xinxiang, Central China's Henan province, suspended their classes for Wednesday to ensure the safety of students, as Typhoon Bebinca approaches the province.

The center of the typhoon moved into Zhoukou city, Henan, early on Wednesday morning. It is forecast that Bebinca will slowly move westward at a speed of 5 to 10 km per hour, with its intensity continuing to weaken. Currently, the provincial meteorological bureau has upgraded its emergency response to the rainstorm to Level III, the third-highest level.

From 7 a.m. Tuesday to 7 a.m. Wednesday, northern, eastern and southeastern parts of the province experienced showers and thunderstorms, with heavy rainfalls and storms reported in cities such as Shangqiu. A total of 82 weather stations in seven county-level areas across Henan recorded more than 100 millimeters of rainfall during the period.

Bebinca, the 13th typhoon of this year, made landfall in Shanghai at about 7:30 a.m. Monday. The typhoon, with the maximum wind force near its center reaching 42 meters per second, churned ashore at the Lingang area of Pudong district. It is believed to be the strongest typhoon to hit Shanghai in 75 years.