South China's Guangdong lowers typhoon alert as storm Wipha weakens

GUANGZHOU -- As the impact of Typhoon Wipha, the sixth typhoon of the year, on South China's Guangdong province gradually weakened, the provincial headquarters for flood, drought and wind control announced the adjustment of its emergency response to wind control from Level II to Level IV at 11:00 am Monday.

According to the provincial meteorological observatory, heavy rainfall is expected to continue in cities and counties across southern Guangdong on Monday. Typhoon-induced winds and rainfall will ease substantially across Guangdong starting from Tuesday.

All localities and departments across Guangdong are still urged to maintain heightened vigilance through reinforced 24/7 duty rotations and interagency coordination meetings, while implementing comprehensive preventive measures against typhoons, heavy rainfall, and potential secondary disasters.

Disaster recovery operations are underway, with prioritized repairs to critical infrastructure including transport networks, power grids, and telecommunications.

Typhoon Wipha made its second landfall near Hailing Island in Yangjiang in Guangdong at around 8:15 pm Sunday as a strong tropical storm, bringing a maximum wind speed of 25 meters per second near its center, the provincial meteorological observatory said.

China has a four-tier emergency response system, with Level I being the most severe response.