Han Ximin

1824295095@qq.com

SHENZHEN has activated its disaster preparedness for Typhoon Ma-on, which is expected to make a head-on landfall in the mid-western coast of Guangdong Province (possibly between Shenzhen and Dianbai) tomorrow, bringing torrential rains and strong gales.

The city’s flood control headquarters and emergency management department initiated a level-IV emergency response yesterday.

It has ordered ships to take shelter and construction sites and marine wind power construction platforms to take precautions, and has started to make rounds along rivers and in low-lying areas to advise residents to prepare and initiate preemptive evacuation if the need arises. It has also coordinated with relevant agencies to set up disaster response and rescue teams.

At a government meeting Monday night, Mayor Qin Weizhong ordered the closure of beaches and coastal tourist spots, and urged efforts to be made to closely monitor and guard against urban waterlogging, especially in rivers and along Metro lines.

The city’s meteorological observatory raised the white alert to blue for Ma-on at 4 p.m. yesterday, the second-lowest level in its five-tier color-coded typhoon warning system.

It said on its website yesterday that the ninth typhoon of this year was 942 kilometers from Shenzhen at 2 p.m. yesterday and was blowing maximum winds of 25 kilometers per second and moving northwestward at 15-20 meters per hour. It will pick up speed and strength as it approaches Guangdong over the next two days, bringing torrential rains.

It said according to the present forecast track, affected by Ma-on, the local weather will deteriorate significantly tonight and winds will strengthen gradually. The biggest rainfall and strongest winds will occur tomorrow.

Fifty-one pairs of trains headed for Shenzhen and Huizhou on Beijing-Kowloon and Beijing-Guangzhou railways will be suspended Thursday, according to an announcement by the Guangzhou Railway Group yesterday. Passengers of the trains affected can be refunded at full price.

The public are warned to stay vigilant, stay away from outdoor giant billboards, and keep themselves updated with the latest weather report.

The name Ma-on is provided by Hong Kong, which means “horse saddle” and is also the name of a peak in the city.