Typhoon Bavi Brings Heavy Rain to Eastern China; Millions Evacuated

Beijing: Typhoon Bavi weakened into a severe tropical storm after making landfall in eastern China's Zhejiang province on Sunday, but continued to bring strong winds and heavy rainfall across eastern China.

According to China's National Meteorological Center, Bavi weakened early Sunday with maximum sustained winds of around 101 kmph near its centre and is expected to move northwest across eastern China.

Before reaching China, the storm passed north of Taiwan on Saturday without making landfall. Taiwan's fire department said at least 134 people were injured, with many hurt in motorcycle and bicycle accidents or due to slippery roads caused by strong winds and rain.

Chinese authorities carried out large-scale evacuations ahead of the storm. Shanghai evacuated more than 290,000 people from vulnerable areas, while Zhejiang relocated about 2.2 million residents. More than 180,000 people were also evacuated in neighbouring Fujian province.

The National Meteorological Center warned that strong winds and heavy rain would continue to affect several cities in eastern China throughout Sunday.

The storm also severely disrupted air travel. Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Hongqiao International Airport were expected to cancel around 653 inbound and outbound flights, according to state media.

In the coastal city of Yueqing in Zhejiang province, more than 1,300 trees were toppled, including at least 700 that were uprooted, state broadcaster CCTV reported.