TAIPEI, July 11: Typhoon Bavi has brought strong winds and rain to Japan’s southern islands, as Taiwan and eastern China brace for the powerful storm with evacuations and high alerts.
Earlier, at least 17 people were killed in the southern Philippines mostly due to landslides that were set off by seasonal monsoon rains that Bavi intensified before the typhoon blew away toward Taiwan, Philippine officials said Saturday.
With maximum sustained winds of 144 kph (89 mph) near its centre, Bavi is forecast to pass north of Taiwan on Saturday, according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration. It is expected to move toward Zhejiang in eastern China and, according to China’s National Meteorological Centre, make landfall in the early hours of Sunday.
Across Japan’s southern islands in the prefecture of Okinawa, local authorities have warned of high waves, strong winds and storm surges, with more than 200 flights cancelled across the region, according to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK. Strong winds and rain have hit islands including Ishigaki.
As of Saturday at 8 am, Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operation Centre registered at least 36 injuries from Typhoon Bavi, many sustained while riding motorcycles in rain and winds on slippery roads.
A total of 14,210 people had been evacuated around the island as of Saturday morning, including from the eastern county of Hualien and the central city of Taichung. Schools and offices in most parts of Taiwan were suspended Saturday.
In southeastern China, cities near the coast are preparing for the impacts of Typhoon Bavi. In the city of Ningde in Fujian province, more than 3,700 people were relocated from high-risk onshore areas as of Friday evening, the official Xinhua News Agency said. Authorities in Fujian province have placed over 17,000 emergency rescue workers on standby.
China’s National Meteorological Centre issued an orange typhoon alert, the second-highest on a four-tier level, with many schools and ferry services suspended. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled, and some high-speed railway services halted.
The centre on Saturday also issued the first red alert for rainstorms of the year, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
In the Philippines, a landslide set off by monsoon rains that Bavi intensified hit a village before dawn Friday in the coastal town of Malapatan in southern Sarangani province, killing at least 10 villagers and leaving three others missing, Office of Civil Defense spokesperson Diego Mariano said.
A separate landslide in Calanogas town in southern Lanao del Sur province before dawn on Friday killed five people, with six others missing, he said.
Two people drowned in floodwaters Wednesday in the southern province of Bukidnon, Mariano said without providing other details.
Office of Civil Defence deputy administrator Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said about 11,000 villagers moved to 77 emergency shelters mostly in southern Philippine provinces in recent days due to the stormy weather. (AP)
