Typhoon Bavi Makes Landfall in Eastern China After Evacuations

Typhoon Bavi made landfall in Zhejiang province in eastern China late Saturday, bringing strong winds after nearly 2 million people took shelter.

There was no immediate word on damage or casualties.

The typhoon, which first roared ashore in Yuhuan city, brought winds up to 144 kilometres an hour, Chinese state media Xinhua reported.

Zhejiang provincial officials are forecasting torrential rain in coastal regions, along with the possibility of flash flooding, transportation disruptions, rivers overflowing and farmland being inundated, Xinhua said.

Typhoon Bavi is slowing and weakening as it travels in a north-westerly direction, according to China's National Meteorological Centre.

The typhoon remains a potent risk due to its size, measuring about as big as France from end to end, Reuters reported.

School classes, work, public transport and outdoor activities were suspended ahead of the storm's arrival, with more than 400 flights and dozens of train services cancelled in the Zhejiang province.

"The proactive, all-out mobilisation, which is sparing no effort or cost, is undertaken entirely to guard against the [worst-case] scenario," government officials said in a statement.

More than 1.7 million people have taken shelter across the Zhejiang province, Chinese state media reported.

In addition, evacuations affected more than 100,000 people from Fujian province and Beijing, along with 34,000 from Shanghai.

Huang Xinghuan, who lives in Wenzhou city in Zhejiang province, said his family had stocked about two to three days' worth of water.

"I'm a little worried, but I think it'll be OK. We've been through typhoons before. We'll get through it," he said.

"I think supplies are well guaranteed now. There's no need to panic or stockpile a lot of food or other supplies," he added.

Extreme weather has wreaked havoc on southern and central China this week, with storms leaving at least 39 dead and causing dozens of rivers to overflow.

Hundreds of flights cancelled

Earlier this week Typhoon Bavi pummelled Japan's southern Sakishima island chain, and brushed past northern Taiwan, where it caused 113 injuries.

Taiwan's government had evacuated the homes of more than 14,000 people, mostly from mountainous areas, as the typhoon approached.

Authorities also cancelled hundreds of international and domestic flights, effectively closing the nation's main international airport at Taoyuan, outside the capital Taipei.

Almost all cities and counties across Taiwan declared a typhoon holiday for Saturday, closing offices and schools that may have been open on the weekend.

Bavi was downgraded to a typhoon as it moved across the Pacific Ocean after slamming into Guam and the Northern Marianas on Monday as a super typhoon.

In the Philippines, the death toll from landslides and other incidents triggered by heavy rains driven by Bavi rose to 18, most on the southern island of Mindanao.

Nearly 11,000 people across the archipelago fled their homes and dozens of ports remain closed, with 313 vessels taking shelter.