An aerial drone photo taken on Oct. 4, 2025 shows passengers ships at Xiuying Port of Haikou, south China's Hainan Province. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's weather and emergency management authorities have raised their alert and emergency response levels for Typhoon Matmo -- the 21st named storm of the 2025 Pacific typhoon season -- as it continues to strengthen and heads toward the country's southern coast.

The National Meteorological Center on Saturday evening raised its existing orange typhoon alert to red, which is the highest level in its four-tier alert system, warning that Matmo is approaching the coasts of the Guangdong and Hainan provinces and is expected to make landfall around noon on Sunday.

At 6 p.m. Saturday, the center of Matmo was located over the South China Sea, about 400 km southeast of Wenchang City in Hainan, packing winds of up to 35 meters per second near its center, according to the Hainan provincial meteorological station.

The typhoon is forecast to move northwest at speeds of 25 to 30 km per hour, gradually intensifying and potentially reaching severe-typhoon level, with wind-speed highs of 42 to 48 meters per second.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has upgraded the emergency flood and typhoon response levels in Guangdong and Hainan to Level III, and maintained a Level-IV emergency flood response in Guangxi. Local authorities of Hainan raised the emergency typhoon response to Level I -- the highest alert level -- at 7 p.m. Saturday.

The Hainan provincial meteorological station has warned that Wenchang City, Haikou City and Chengmai County will be affected from Sunday morning.

The cities of Haikou and Wenchang have announced measures to suspend classes, work, business operations, public transport and flights, and to close scenic areas.

Transport authorities in Hainan have said that all train services in the island province will be suspended on Sunday. The island's high-speed rail network is expected to resume operations on Monday.

All inbound and outbound flights to and from Haikou Meilan International Airport will be canceled from 11 p.m. Saturday, with a gradual resumption expected from 8 p.m. Sunday. Sanya Phoenix International Airport is currently operating normally, though flight delays may occur as a result of the typhoon.

Matmo is also expected to bring heavy rains and strong winds to northern Hainan Island from Saturday night to Sunday.

In Guangdong's Zhanjiang City, all the 25 A-level tourist attractions and three bathing beaches were closed to ensure the safety of visitors. The city has also canceled more than 200 recreational and sports activities scheduled from Saturday to Monday.

China has a four-tier emergency response system, with Level I being the most severe response, and a four-tier weather warning system, with red representing the most severe warning, followed by orange, yellow and blue.