China: Typhoon Wipha makes second landfall in Guangdong

Guangzhou, July 20 (IANS) Typhoon Wipha, the sixth typhoon of the year, made a second landfall near Hailing Island in Yangjiang, south China's Guangdong Province, on Sunday as a strong tropical storm, with a maximum wind speed near its centre of 25 meters per second, the provincial meteorological observatory said.

It is expected to move west-southwestward at about 20 kilometres per hour while gradually weakening in intensity.

Earlier on Sunday at around 5:50 pm, Wipha first landed near Haiyan Town of Jiangmen City in Guangdong, with a 33-meters-per-second maximum wind speed near its centre.

Yesterday, South China's Hainan and Guangdong provinces were plunged into high alert as Typhoon Wipha entered the South China Sea, bringing strong gales and heavy rains to the two provinces.

Hainan activated a Level IV emergency response, while Guangdong upgraded its emergency response from Level IV to Level II at 11 am.

According to the Hainan Meteorological Service, Typhoon Wipha intensified from a tropical storm to a strong tropical storm in the early hours of Saturday. At 8 am, its centre was located in the northeastern part of the South China Sea, approximately 930 kilometres east of Wenchang City of Hainan.

The Hainan Meteorological Service estimated yesterday that Wipha was advancing northwest at a speed of approximately 20 kilometres per hour while gaining strength.

It was approaching the coastal areas stretching from Shenzhen in Guangdong to Wenchang in Hainan, and was likely to make landfall in these areas between Sunday afternoon and nighttime, Xinhua news agency reported

Due to its impact, from Saturday to July 22, most sea areas and land regions in Hainan will experience rainstorms and strong winds. Additionally, the Qiongzhou Strait between Guangdong and Hainan may face prolonged suspensions of shipping operations from Sunday until July 22.

Additionally, Guangdong has maintained specialised rescue vessels and helicopters, along with high-power tugboats and cleanup vessels on standby.

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

--IANS/bdp/dan