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Typhoon Linfa Hits Southern China


FILE - A flood warning gauge is seen along a flooded road after tropical storm Linfa hit the Philippines, July 6, 2015.
FILE - A flood warning gauge is seen along a flooded road after tropical storm Linfa hit the Philippines, July 6, 2015.

The powerful Typhoon Linfa has made landfall Thursday in southern China, the first of two large storms taking aim at the Chinese coast.

The Xinhua news agency says Linfa hit the southern province of Guangdong, where it was bringing winds of up to 126 kilometers per hour.

In advance of the storm, Guangdong authorities closed schools, suspended passenger trains, and recalled boats to ports, according to Xinhua.

Typhoon Linfa, weather prediction map as of July 9, 2015
Typhoon Linfa, weather prediction map as of July 9, 2015

The state-run Hong Kong Observatory issued a strong wind warning, saying Linfa will bring wind speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour.

"Even though it has shown indications of weakening, its intensity is not expected to change rapidly in a short period of time," the observatory said.

Swirling further off the coast was the more powerful Typhoon Chan-Hom, which is expected to hit Fujian or Zhejiang provinces late Friday.

Xinhua says Shanghai plans to suspend all passenger trains along the coast on Friday and Saturday.

Chan-Hom, with maximum winds of 130 kilometers per hour, could hit the northern coast of Taiwan on Thursday.

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