China on Highest Alert for Super Typhoon Chan-Hom

Hangzhou (PNA/Xinhua) — China is on the highest alert as super typhoon Chan-Hom approaches the eastern coast with winds of up to 187 km per hour.

The National Meteorological Center issued a red alert, the highest, on Friday morning for Chan-Hom, whose center was spotted 550 km southeast off the coast of Zhejiang Province at 5 a.m. Friday.

It is forecast to continue to gain momentum and make landfall on Friday night or Saturday morning between the coastal areas of Zhejiang and Fujian provinces.

In Zhejiang, more than 10,000 people have been evacuated and 10,000 fishing vessels returned to harbor for shelter.

The Fujian provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters ordered all people on coastal fishing farms in Ningde, Fuzhou, Pingtan and Putian to be displaced by 10 a.m. Friday.

Typhoon Linfa made landfall on Thursday in the southern Guangdong Province, bringing torrential rain to the coastal area. No casualties have been reported. (PNA/Xinhua) JBP/EBP