After the life-threatening floods caused havoc, now China is bracing for a major typhoon.
According to the forecasters, typhoon In-Fa is likely to arrive on Sunday making landfall along the east coast near Shanghai.
Therefore, flights and train services have been suspended until further notice. People have been warned to stay indoors.
The typhoon is expected to be accompanied by unruly winds, bumpy seas and flooding. Dozens of ships have also been evacuated from the port south of Shanghai.
The country has experienced numerous typhoons in the past years that follows a period of historic flooding. This led to widespread damage and killed at least 58 people in central China.
Currently, the emergency crew is still working and trying their best to rescue survivors and providing aid to the millions of people affected by the calamity.
Typhoon In-Fa could bring more severe rainstorms to the stricken region in the coming days. Also, the officials fear it could hinder the rescue and recovery operations.
As per the information provided by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center – at present the storm is moving away from Taiwan. It is accompanied by gusts of about 92 mph (148 km/h)
In its latest update, the forecaster said the typhoon was not expected to strengthen suggestively before it hits eastern China.
After it makes landfall, flash flooding, mudslides and gusts of up to 120 mph are possible along the east coast, forecasters have warned.
Sunday onwards the typhoon would bring “long periods of extremely heavy rainfall” – China’s National Meteorological Center said.
It added that coastal areas “should guard against the combined impact of wind, rain and tides”. In addition to this, schools, markets, and businesses would remain close – ordered by the authorities in Zhejiang.
In China’s biggest city, Shanghai – some public parks and museums have been shut.
This week’s flooding in central China has raised questions about measures for extreme weather events in the country’s major cities.
Many factors contribute to extreme weather, but experts say climate change caused by a warming atmosphere makes these events more likely.
As China braces for Typhoon In-Fa, another tropical storm in the region is threatening to bring heavy downpours and strong winds to the Tokyo Olympics in Japan next week.
