China has escalated its emergency response to Level III in the southern provincial-level regions of Hainan, Guangdong, and Guangxi as Typhoon Wutip approaches, marking the first typhoon of the year.
The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters announced the upgrade on Friday, indicating the seriousness of the impending weather event. Level III is the second-highest alert in China’s four-tier emergency response system for flood control.
A working team has been dispatched to Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to provide on-site guidance. Two other teams continue to assist with flood and typhoon prevention efforts in Ledong Li Autonomous County in Hainan Province and Zhanjiang, a coastal city in Guangdong Province.
As of 10 a.m. on Friday, Typhoon Wutip, classified as a severe tropical storm, was positioned off the coast of Ledong. The storm is moving northward at approximately 10 kilometers per hour, skirting the western coast of Hainan.
Forecasters predict that Wutip will make landfall between Xuwen in Guangdong and Beihai in Guangxi around midday Saturday. The typhoon is expected to bring heavy to torrential rainfall from Friday to Sunday across regions including Hainan, western and northern Guangdong, and eastern and coastal areas of Guangxi.
Residents in the affected areas are advised to stay alert, secure property, and follow instructions from local authorities to ensure safety during the storm.
