Hainan braces for heavy rain through weekend

A tropical depression centered about 140 kilometers south of Sansha's Yongxing Island, Hainan province on Friday is expected to bring continuous rain until Tuesday, according to the Hainan Meteorological Service.

The service issued a Level 4 storm warning at 9 am on Friday, noting that clouds were moving west at about 30 kilometers per hour and forecast that they would approach the south-central coast of Vietnam on Friday evening.

Eastern, central and southern areas of Hainan Island will be swept by heavy rainfall from Friday to Tuesday, with downpours expected between Friday to Sunday, the local meteorological service.

It estimated that the accumulated precipitation will reach between 300 to 400 millimeters in Qionghai, Wanning, Lingshui and Qiongzhong, with some areas immersed getting as much as 500 mm. Rain in other cities and counties is expected to range from 80 to 300 mm.

The island province has been continuously slammed by strong winds and rain over the past week, with typhoon Nangka, the first typhoon to hit Hainan this year, forcing the cancellation of more than 190 flights and suspension of ferry and rail services, as well as the closure of schools and scenic spots.

The local authorities transferred a total of 13,627 people from dangerous buildings and low-lying areas, and saw 21,545 fishing boats return timely to ports for shelter.

Nangka, the 16th typhoon of the year, landed in the coastal area of Qionghai in eastern Hainan Island at around 7:20 pm on Tuesday with winds as strong as 100 kilometers per hour, bringing rainfall exceeding 50 mms to 114 towns and downpours of between 100 to 150mms to 14 towns and districts in Qiongzhong, Wenchang and Qionghai.

Nangka uprooted a number of trees, caused injuries of a few local residents, according to local reports. But no figures of economic losses were available for the time being.