Beijing: Over 340,000 people were evacuated and train and flight services suspended as Typhoon Dujuan hit east China's Fujian province on Tuesday packing heavy wind speeds.
The storm hit the coastal city of Putian at around 8:50 am, packing winds of up to 33 meters per second, the Fujian Meteorological Service said.
Heavy rain swept Fujian with precipitation over 200 mm in parts of the province, while all 32,000 fishing boats returned to harbour and around 160,000 people returned to shore the day before the typhoon, the 21st to hit China this year.
Weng Yuyao, mayor of Putian, said 10 potentially weak sea walls had been strengthened prior to Dujuan's landfall, and that the city evacuated nearly 20,000 people. Dujuan has also brought gales, torrential rain and waves to neighbouring Zhejiang Province.
According to the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters, more than 320,000 people in eight cities have been evacuated and more than 25,000 ships had returned to harbour by 7 am.
More than 600,000 families in Fujian have suffered a blackout and workers are racing to restore power supply, according to the Fujian branch of the State Grid Corporation.
Airports in the cities of Fuzhou and Jinjiang have cancelled 103 flights since Monday. Xiamen Ferry Company also cancelled all ferries, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
In Fuzhou and the cities of Ningde, Putian and Zhangzhou, schools were suspended. More than 200 high-speed trains to and from Fujian will also be suspended.
The typhoon coinciding with high tide caused severe flooding last night and this morning, said a spokesperson from Xiamen's maritime fishing service.
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