China evacuates thousands as storm nears

Chinese authorities have evacuated more than 200,000 people from its east coast as the region braces itself for its most powerful typhoon in years. More than 7,000 fishing vessels have been called to harbour, with Typhoon Muifa's winds reaching 162km/h (100mph) and generating 36ft (11m) waves at sea. At least 140 flights have been cancelled and rail services disrupted. Muifa brushed past Shanghai on Sunday bringing high winds and heavy rain, but did not make its expected landfall. Meteorologists, who earlier predicted Muifa would reach land in Zhejiang province or Shanghai at the weekend, said Muifa would probably make landfall near Qingdao city, in Shandong province, early on Monday. On Sunday morning the storm was about 186 miles (300km) north-east of Shanghai, moving north-west over the East China Sea at about 15mph (23km/h), according to the Hong Kong Observatory. China's National Marine Environmental Forecasting Centre has upgraded its warning to a red alert - the highest possible - for shipping in the East China sea. Muifa has already battered the Philippines - where it caused flooding - Taiwan and Japan's southern island of Okinawa, which was hit by blackouts. The typhoon is being described as the most serious to threaten the region since 2005, when Typhoon Matsa killed 19 people, including seven in Shanghai. 'Severe impact' China Southern Airlines has cancelled more than 140 flights to eastern China from Saturday afternoon while Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines warned of a "severe impact" on services, reported AFP news agency. Shanghai's rail authorities are planning inspections of local high-speed rail networks and warned that some services could be halted or delayed depending on the storm's severity. On Wednesday night, Muifa was downgraded from a super typhoon - measuring 185km/h (114mph) or more - to a severe typhoon, but it is still expected to be one of the most powerful storms to hit China in recent years.