china waits for a major climatic occurrence in the form of typhoon Lekima. It's on its way to strike the eastern coast after battering Taiwan with powerful winds of more than 120mph. It could make landfall on Saturday. The authorities have declared a red alert and deployed emergency teams to tackle the situation and assist in relief work. Those in charge have issued warnings to people along the coast of Shanghai to be ready for evacuation.
Typhoons of this nature leave behind a trail of destruction with damaged infrastructure in the form of breakdown of power lines and communication links.
BBC reports that these are not new to China and Lekima is the ninth one so far this year. It was a super typhoon but downgraded to a regular one by Taiwan. China issued flood warnings for some regions along the Yangtze River and the Yellow River. As a precautionary measure, Beijing has canceled a number of trains heading to and from the danger zone of the Yangtze delta.
Effects of Lekima on Taiwan
The typhoon has left thousands of homes without power in Taiwan.
It resulted in the closure of a number of educational institutions and offices. The island suspended its high-speed rail service in a part of the city of Taichung. Lekima follows a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck the eastern part of Taiwan. In the opinion of experts, the tremors increased possibilities of landslides. In addition, the storm dumped 35 inches of rain in the mountains.
BBC goes on to add that right now there are two typhoons in the western Pacific. One of these is Lekima, and the other Krosa. The latter is active in the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam. Its direction is towards Japan where it could strike next week. Incidentally, Lekima skirted by Japan's Ryukyu Islands and cut off power to many homes.
China is in the grip of a typhoon
According to Sky News, Lekima could bring torrential rain and gales on the eastern coast of China. Authorities have strengthened flood prevention efforts. They are also ready to evacuate people and take suitable measures with regard to train services, air travel, and shipping to ensure the safety of people and properties. Taiwan canceled flights and ordered the closure of markets, offices, and schools.
The met department reports that this is the strongest typhoon since 2014. There is a warning that the country could experience rainfall of up to 13in in the eastern regions. Instructions are issued to cruise liners coming to Shanghai to delay arrival and for some ships to proceed to Hong Kong.
Such actions would prevent accidents and collisions. There is the cancellation of ferry services in Zhejiang, while evacuation is undertaken for more than 200 tourists from Beiji island. Moreover, the typhoon and consequent rainfall could raise the level of three main streams of the Yangtze.