South China braces for Typhoon Wipha

The National Meteorological Center renewed a blue alert Wednesday for Typhoon Wipha approaching China's southern provinces of Guangdong and Hainan.

Dark clouds over Haikou City, Hainan Province on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 as Typhoon Wipha approaches. [Photo: IC]

Meanwhile, the China Meteorological Administration activated a level-IV emergency response to warn affected areas to make preparations.

Wipha, the seventh typhoon this year, is forecasted to make landfall in the coastal regions of Guangdong and Hainan from Wednesday night to Thursday morning.

The typhoon is expected to bring strong winds to the middle and northern parts of the South China Sea as well as islands in the sea areas, and will be accompanied by torrential rains in vast portions of the two provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

The administration warned related local departments to strengthen safety management, formulate plans for evacuation and relocation, and affected areas to guard against geological disasters caused by heavy rains.

China has a four-tier, color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe, followed by orange, yellow and blue.