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Kaemi, the fifth typhoon of the year, weakened to tropical storm at 12:00 p.m. on Tuesday and then to tropical low pressure at 5:00 on Wednesday in Pinghe County, east China's Fujian Province.
According to the provincial meteorological observatory, rainstorm brought about by Kaemi will continue for the coming few days in Fujian, particularly in coastal cities and western Longyan City.
The observatory called for measures against possible mountain torrents, landslides, mud-rock flows and other disasters in the province.
Earlier reports said Kaemi, meaning "ant" in Korean, made landfall at 11:45 p.m. on Monday at Taitung of Taiwan Island, entered into the Taiwan Straits at around 4:00 a.m. on Tuesday and hit Jinjiang of Fujian at 3:50 p.m. the same day. The eye of the typhoon had a wind velocity of 33 meters per second when it made the landfall on the Chinese mainland.
By 3:30 pm. on Tuesday prior to the landfall of Kaemi, approximately 643,900 people in Fujian had been evacuated to safe places, including 319,400 on the sea, according to the provincial flood control authorities.
The typhoon unleashed heavy rainfall of 50-105 millimeters on Tuesday hitting many counties and cities across the province.
In the neighboring Guangdong Province, all fishing boats and rafts, 12,498 in total, with about 46,000 fishermen, got shelter in harbors.
Heavy rain also swept east China's Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Local governments have drafted emergency plans against the typhoon.
(Xinhua News Agency July 26, 2006)
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