Chinese authorities have raised alert levels in several provinces in the east and centre of the country following Flooding after Typhoon Gaemiwhich made landfall on Thursday night, the official Xinhua news agency reported today.

Specifically, the Ministry of Emergency Management has activated the corresponding alerts in the regions of Canton (southeast), Shandong (east), Henan (center) and Hubei (center), and has also raised it from the fourth to the third level in Liaoning (northeast).

Other provinces such as Fujian (southeast, where Gaemi made landfall), Jiangxi (southeast) and Zhejiang (east) had already announced measures to cushion the impact of torrential rains (in some areas, they reached 512.8 millimetres (mm)) and prepare for the subsequent floods.

On Friday afternoon, the Ministry of Water Resources issued a red alert, the highest level of warning, for mountain torrents in parts of Fujian, Jiangxi and Canton. According to the assessment given on Friday morning, the typhoon had left some 628,000 people affected in Fujian and had caused the temporary displacement of some 290,000 residents.

In neighbouring Guangzhou, another 70,000 people have been forced to leave their homes until further notice. Chinese authorities have so far announced the allocation of 66 million yuan (9.1 million dollars, 8.4 million euros) in funds for the urgent repair of roads damaged by the floods.

Before reaching the Chinese shores, Gaemi had passed through Taiwan still in ‘very strong typhoon’ category, leaving at least eight dead and 866 injuredaccording to the assessment provided this Friday by the island authorities.