Authorities closed schools and suspended ferry routes in eastern China's Fujian province on Thursday (Sep 3), after forecasters warned of heavy rain brought about by Typhoon Saudel.

Extreme weather has wreaked havoc in parts of China during the past few months, with a slew of typhoons bringing torrential rainfall and triggering the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people.

Typhoon Saudel made its third landfall in China on Fujian's coast on Thursday morning, according to local authorities, after earlier lashing neighbouring Zhejiang province twice.

Schools in the cities of Fuzhou and Quanzhou halted in-person activities, while some tourist attractions including theme parks were also temporarily closed in Fuzhou, local media outlets reported.

A total of 24 passenger ferry routes along the coast of Fujian were suspended on Thursday, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The province's emergency management authority warned of rainstorms and secondary disasters including flash floods and landslides.

"The province is currently experiencing a period of persistent, heavy rainfall," it said in a WeChat statement.

Around 247,700 people in high-risk areas in neighbouring Fujian had been evacuated last week, after authorities had warned of heavy rain, Xinhua news agency reported.

At least 159 people were killed in southern China's Guangxi region in July after Typhoon Maysak triggered devastating floods.

Scientists warn the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events will increase as the planet continues to heat up because of fossil fuel emissions.

China is the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, but it is also a global renewable energy powerhouse that aims to make its massive economy carbon-neutral by 2060.

A catastrophic flood sliced through the border area between Nepal and China's Tibet region last week, killing more than 1,200 people and leaving more than 4,750 missing as of Thursday, heightening concerns globally over the growing risks of climate change.

Source: AFP

-Agencies