Gale force winds and heavy rainstorms lashed western Guangdong
Province yesterday evening, as Typhoon Prapiroon made landfall.
The typhoon whose name means 'god of rain' in Thai came inland
between Yangjiang and Dianbai at 7:20 PM, bringing winds up to gale
force 12.
More than a quarter of a million people were evacuated from the
area, which has been battered by successive typhoons over the
summer, and 40,000 ships were called into Guangdong's harbors.
Sources with the Guangdong provincial flood control and drought
relief office said emergency measures had been drawn up before the
typhoon's arrival, with ships called to harbor by noon yesterday.
Prapiroon is expected to hit the province even more ferociously
than previous typhoons this year.
The office, together with the State Flood Control and Drought
Relief Headquarters, sent two special working groups early
yesterday morning, to deal with possible natural disasters
triggered by Prapiroon.
Foul weather, such as heavy rain and powerful winds, is expected
to continue to plague the Pearl River Delta region after Prapiroon
moves on. The typhoon is expected to head northwest to the Guangxi
Zhuang Autonomous Region this morning, Lin Liangxun, chief
forecaster of the Guangdong Provincial Meteorological Bureau said
in an interview with China Daily.
Ahead of Prapiroon's arrival, Guangdong and the neighboring Hong
Kong and Macao regions have experienced heavy rain and strong winds
since Wednesday night.
"The rains in the western part of the Pearl River Delta region
are expected to last until Saturday," said Lin.
In provincial capital Guangzhou, heavy rain, whipped up by gale
force eight winds, began falling yesterday afternoon, causing rush
hour traffic jams in most urban areas.
At least 19 flights leaving to and from Hong Kong were grounded
as of 2:00?PM yesterday because of the heavy rain, according
to the Xinhua News Agency.
Ships between Hong Kong, Macao and Shenzhen and trains between
Hong Kong and Shenzhen were also cancelled.
In Macao, which began experiencing rainstorms yesterday morning,
most businesses and schools were forced to close for the day.
Macao, which neighbors Zhuhai in western Guangdong, has opened
three temporary shelters for affected residents.
The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has
urged the relevant local government organizations to stay alert
over Prapiroon, as the country has already been hard hit by five
devastating typhoons this year.
The two previous typhoons, Billis and Kaemi, which landed in
south China last month, killed more than 600 and brought huge
economic losses.
It is predicted that more five or six more tropical storms will
form around the South China Sea this month, with two or three
making landfall, said Lin.
(China Daily August 4, 2006)