SHENYANG, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Northeast China's Liaoning Province on Wednesday issued a Level II emergency response in the wake of Typhoon Bavi barreling toward the region. The alert is the second highest in the four-tier system of emergency responses.
Bavi will bring strong winds and downpours in most parts of Liaoning on Wednesday and Thursday, with some areas seeing up to 200 mm of rain, the provincial meteorological bureau said.
The provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters ordered suspension of classes and businesses, exempting special industries. Vessels in the affected areas were required to return to port.
On Wednesday, Shandong provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters activated a Level IV emergency response for the typhoon.
Bavi is expected to bring gales and downpours to east Shandong, with some areas experiencing more than 150 mm of rain.
A total of 15,000 members from 89 professional flood control teams are on standby.
The province directed relevant departments to strengthen safety management of tourist sites and assigned personnel to inspect aquafarms, vessels and ports. All ships were asked to be moored and crew members moved to land.
China's national observatory issued a red alert, the highest warning level, for Bavi at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Typhoon Bavi, the eighth this year, was seen around 610 km offshore south of the border of China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), at 5 p.m. Wednesday, with a maximum wind-force of 45 meters per second near its eye, the National Meteorological Center (NMC) said.
The NMC expects the typhoon to move northward at a speed of 30 km per hour before making landfall in coastal areas between Zhuanghe City of Liaoning and North Pyongan province in DPRK Thursday morning.
From Wednesday to Thursday, parts of the provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Shandong and Jiangsu will experience downpours, the NMC said. Enditem
