Tropical storm Nock-Ten, the eighth storm and the most powerful one hitting China so far this year, moved north to the Beibu Gulf on the early morning of Saturday after landing at the southern island province of Hainan late Friday afternoon.

It was recorded as packing winds of up to 25 meters per second when it entered the sea northwest to the city of Dongfang in Hainan at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, the provincial meteorological center said in a statement.

It is expected to move west at the speed of 15 km per hour and make landfall again at the coastal areas in north of Vietnam.

The tropical storm has brought strong winds and heavy rains since it landed in south China. Though its influence has reduced, rainstorms will continue to pound Hainan from Saturday to Sunday.

A total of 176 flights scheduled to depart or arrive at the Haikou Meilan International Airport and Sanya Phoenix International Airport, were canceled Friday.

As tropical storm Nock-Ten moved toward north to the Beibu Gulf, flights in the two airports were resumed Saturday morning, according to the airports.