Typhoon Gaemi hits China after 25 killed in Taiwan and Philippines – live

Typhoon Gaemi has moved inside China but parts of Taiwan were still getting lashed by relentless rainfall.

Some parts of southern Taiwan are expected to have recorded rainfall of 2,200 mm (87 inches) since Tuesday.

The storm cut power to around half a million households, though most are now back online, utility Taipower said.

Despite slightly weakening since its landfall in Fujian’s Putian, a city of over 3 million, Gaemi and its giant cloud-bands are forecast to unleash intense rainfall in at least 10 Chinese provinces in the coming days, forecasters say.

The arrival of Gaemi has drawn comparisons with Typhoon Doksuri last year, which triggered historic flooding as far north as Beijing and caused nationwide losses of nearly $30bn.

Authorities said water levels in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River as well as the vast freshwater lakes of Poyang and Dongting in central China could rise, returning to dangerous levels seen in early July after intense summer rains.

Due to its high vapour content, Beijing cautioned that Gaemi could spawn strong rainfall in the Chinese capital, about 2,000 km (1,242 miles) north of Putian, even as the storm weakens into a tropical depression.

Gaemi’s rains could cause flash floods and waterlogging particularly in parts of northern China where the soil remains saturated after being lashed by a passing system of storms earlier this week, authorities warned.

Ahead of the typhoon’s arrival in China, 240,800 people in Fujian were evacuated.

Despite slightly weakening since its landfall in Fujian’s Putian, a city of over 3 million, Gaemi and its giant cloud-bands are forecast to unleash intense rainfall in at least 10 Chinese provinces in the coming days.

The arrival of Gaemi has drawn comparisons with Typhoon Doksuri last year, which triggered historic flooding as far north as Beijing and caused nationwide losses of nearly $30 billion.

Authorities said water levels in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River as well as the vast freshwater lakes of Poyang and Dongting in central China could rise, returning to dangerous levels seen in early July after intense summer rains.

Typhoon Gaemi roared into southeastern China on Thursday night after churning across the Taiwan Strait, prompting warnings of swelling rivers, flash floods and waterlogging in cities and provinces that were hit by extreme rains just several weeks ago.

Gaemi, the third and most powerful typhoon to hit China’s eastern seaboard this year, made landfall in Fujian province at 7:50 p.m. (1150 GMT) after whipping Taiwan with gusts of up to 227 kph (141 mph), some of the strongest winds recorded in the Western Pacific Ocean.

Typhoon Gaemi has weakened into a “severe tropical storm” over southeastern China, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

Radar images show the latest path and intensity:

Authorities in China have warned of swelling rivers, flash floods and waterlogging in cities and provinces that were hit by extreme rain just several weeks ago.

Gaemi, the third and most powerful typhoon to hit China’s eastern seaboard this year, made landfall in Fujian province.

The typhoon has made landfall in China after sweeping across Taiwan, where it caused landslides and flooding in low-lying areas and left three people dead.

In China’s coastal Fujian province, more than 240,000 people have been forced to flee as it approached, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

After hitting the coast, the storm is expected to bring heavy rains to inland areas including the capital Beijing over the next three days.

A 78-year-old man in Taiwan died when his home was hit by a mudslide on Thursday afternoon, Taiwan’s Central News Agency said, and two people were killed on Wednesday before the storm made landfall around midnight.

Another 380 people were reported to have been injured.

A third death on Wednesday – a driver pinned under an overturned excavator – was initially attributed to the typhoon but later was determined not be linked, the news agency said.