Third typhoon in week expected

China was braced on Monday for a record third typhoon within a week as torrential rains and floods brought by two powerful storms still affected many regions.

The country is faced with a tremendous burden from floods and other disasters due to frequent typhoons since mid-July, Chen Lei, minister of water resources, said on Monday.

"It is the first time that the country will have been hit by three typhoons one after another within seven days," he said in a statement posted on the ministry's website.

While the country is still dealing with the impact of typhoons Saola and Damrey that caused extensive damage over the weekend, typhoon Haikui is fast approaching, said Chen, who is also deputy commander-in-chief of the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

New tropical cyclones will be formed in the next two days, which may continue to challenge the country's flood control capacity.

Haikui strengthened into a fierce tropical storm on Sunday and further strengthened into a typhoon on Monday afternoon. It is approaching the coastal area of East China's Zhejiang province. The center of Haikui was in the ocean, about 580 kilometers southeast of Shanghai by 3 pm on Monday.

Heavy rainstorms brought by Haikui are expected to hit Shanghai and Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian and Jiangsu provinces in next three days, according to the China Meteorological Administration.

According to the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau, Haikui is moving northwestward at 15 kilometers an hour.

The bureau issued a blue typhoon alert on Monday.

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Tourists are persuaded to leave the beach ahead of Typhoon Haikui in Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang province, Aug 6, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

Haikui is expected to move over the central and northern coastal areas of Zhejiang between midnight on Tuesday to noon on Wednesday, wind speed may reach 108 to 119 kilometers per hour as the center of the storm moves across the coast.

Shanghai is expected to be lashed by rainstorms brought by Haikui from Tuesday to Thursday, with heavy rains in some areas, said Yao Jianqun, deputy director of the Shanghai Central Meteorological Station.

Real-time weather information will be sent to residents via TV, radio, micro blogs and text messages.

The Shanghai Railway Bureau has decided to suspend the sale of train tickets of the Ningbo-Taizhou-Wenzhou Railway along the southeast coast on Wednesday in order to ensure the safety of passengers.

Tourism authorities in Zhoushan, Zhejiang, issued a notice on its micro blog, warning tourists to evacuate, and saying all sightseeing places will be temporarily closed.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters sent four work teams on Monday to Shanghai and Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Jiangxi provinces to supervise flood control work.

Local authorities should step up inspections to prevent any potential typhoon inflicted damage to major facilities such as the chemical industry, nuclear power plants and railroads.

Contact the writers at jinzhu@chinadaily.com.cn and lixinzhu@chinadaily.com.cn