Typhoon Gaemi pummelled towns on China’s coastal Fujian province on Friday with heavy rains and strong winds as the most powerful storm to hit the country this year began its widely watched trek into the populous interior.
The storm has affected almost 630,000 people in China’s Fujian so far, with almost half of them having to be relocated, Xinhua news agency reported. Earlier this week, it killed dozens of people as it swept through Taiwan and worsened seasonal rains in the Philippines.
Gaemi was packing winds of up to 100.8 kph (62.6 mph) near its centre, easing slightly from 118.8 kph logged on Thursday night when it landed in the Fujian city of Putian.
While Gaemi has been downgraded to a tropical storm because of slower wind speeds, its vast cloud-bands remain a significant flood risk, particularly to rivers in central China already elevated due to summer rains.
Hours ahead of the typhoon’s arrival, the Standing Committee of the Communist Party’s politburo, helmed by President Xi Jinping, held a special meeting on flood control and urged cadres across the country to protect lives
