THE Ministry of Transport on Thursday upgraded the emergency response to Typhoon Gaemi, the third typhoon of this year, to Level II, the second-highest level of the country.

Typhoon Gaemi was located 55 kilometers southeast of waters off Pingtan in East China’s Fujian Province at 10 a.m. Thursday, according to a red alert renewed by the National Meteorological Center.

Fujian Province had relocated 156,800 residents as of 7 a.m. Thursday as Typhoon Gaemi approaches, said local authorities.

As of 10 a.m. Thursday, 73 passenger ferry routes including four cross-Strait routes along the coast of Fujian — 203 passenger ferries altogether — have suspended operations.

A total of 97 flights were canceled due to the typhoon.

Meanwhile, 92 marine projects at sea have suspended work, and construction vessels and personnel have been evacuated.

Over 29,000 people working on fishing rafts along its coast have been evacuated to the shore, and 733 fishing boats have taken shelter at ports and some 3,200 people aboard have been evacuated ashore, according to the provincial flood control office.

Local maritime authorities in Fujian have issued more than 2,000 maritime typhoon alerts, evacuating 1,334 vessels from affected areas and relocating more than 4,000 maritime personnel.

The typhoon made landfall in eastern Taiwan’s Yilan County around midnight Thursday, leaving two dead and 201 injured. Currently, it is forecast to move northwest at an estimated speed of up to 15 km per hour.

It was expected to make landfall along the coast from Lianjiang to Xiuyu in Fujian between Thursday afternoon and evening, and then it is projected to continue to move further inland to the north.

(Xinhua)