Typhoon Talim pounded east China's Fujian
Province yesterday afternoon with strong winds, forcing local
schools, roads and airports to close, and coastal areas have
suffered rainstorms and gales since Wednesday.
The powerful storm forced the closure of Changle International
Airport in the provincial capital of Fuzhou and affected 11 flights
in an airport in Quanzhou City. As of 10 PM on Thursday, a total of
45 domestic flights and three international flights had been
canceled.
Several interprovincial highways were also temporarily closed
yesterday.
According to the provincial observatory, Talim landed in the
Putian region at 2:30 PM, with wind speeds of 126 kilometers per
hour.
The provincial educational department issued an order earlier
that day, the first of the new semester, to close all schools in
six coastal cities for two days to ensure students' safety.
All schools are required to check the safety of their buildings
and equipment before receiving students again.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, the provincial flood control and
drought relief headquarters relocated 286,000 people and organized
disaster relief teams. Yesterday, another 193,000 were
evacuated.
A team from the State Flood Control and Drought Relief
Headquarters has arrived in the province to supervise
operations.
The Central Observatory said Talim, which has been downgraded to
a strong tropical storm, will continue to affect the provinces of
Guangdong,
Zhejiang
and Jiangsu,
and Shanghai Municipality and several inland regions will see gales
and downpours until the end of the week.
Local governments and disaster relief departments were warned to
prepare for a barrage of rainstorms and landslides.
The storm is moving northwest and is expected to arrive in Jiangxi
Province today with less power.
Reports that reached Hong Kong yesterday said two people were
killed and 39 others injured when Talim swept over Taiwan on
Thursday.
A 67-year-old man drowned in a fish pond in Tainan and a
43-year-old man drowned in a dike near his home in Miaoli. The
injured were mostly hit by falling billboards or flying
objects.
Taiwan Power Co. said that as of 11 AM yesterday, more than 1.45
million households on the island had experienced electricity
disruption due to the typhoon.
(Xinhua News Agency September 2, 2005)
