East China's coastal provinces face the threat of heavy storms
on Friday as Typhoon Matsa approaches, the National Meteorological
Centre warned on Thursday.
Having started out as a tropical storm, Matsa is forecast to
advance across the southeastern East China Sea, before slamming
into coastal areas of east China's Zhejiang
Province.
Resultant strong gales are predicted for Taiwan, parts of Fujian,
Zhejiang, Shanghai
and Jiangsu
with accompanying rainstorms.
"Coastal authorities should be well prepared for the typhoon as
it could combine with a local spring tide to cause increased
devastation," the centre warned.
Following the downpours earlier this week, torrential rains will
continue to lash eight provinces across northeast, central and east
China, including parts of Liaoning, Shandong, Anhui, Jiangsu,
Jiangxi, Hunan and Zhejiang.
In Hong Kong, two Cathay Pacific flights bound for Taiwan were
canceled, according to local media on Friday.
The two flights, CX 407 and Flight CX 403, were scheduled to
depart from Hong Kong at 8:00 AM and 9:30 AM respectively.
Taiwan's stock and foreign exchange markets were closed on
Friday.
Matsa is also likely to batter east China's Shanghai between
August 5 and 7 with high winds and torrents, according to local
meteorological and flood control departments.
Judging from its trajectory, Matsa is expected to move toward
Shanghai after it lands in east China's Zhejiang province and
passes through Hangzhou Bay.
It will be the most severe typhoon in Shanghai in the last eight
years, the municipal meteorological station said, adding that it
will bring heavy rainstorms and strong winds to the city.
In Zhejiang Province, the provincial meteorological bureau has
warned of landslides and mud-rock flows in coastal areas and
southern parts of the province.
In related news, a heavy rainstorm has claimed four lives as at
noon on Wednesday in east China's Anhui
Province. Some 1.87 million others have been affected.
The provincial civil affairs department said on Thursday that
heavy rainstorms have also been beating down on four other cities
-- Suzhou, Bengbu, Huaibei and Fuyang -- in the northern part of
the province since Tuesday morning.
The rains have damaged 166,666 hectares and completely destroyed
24,666 hectares of farmland, according to the department, adding
that the direct economic loss was estimated at 500 million yuan
(US$60.2 million).
(Xinhua News Agency, China Daily?August 5,
2005)
