Typhoon Prapiroon makes landfall in south China's Hainan

Typhoon Prapiroon, the fourth typhoon of this year, made landfall along the coast of Wanning City in south China's island province of Hainan at 1:30 a.m. on Monday, packing winds of up to 28 meters per second near the center, the local meteorological service said. 

Typhoon Prapiroon is expected to continue to move northwest and enter the Beibu Gulf, bringing strong winds and rains to Hainan and Guangdong provinces as well as Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. 

The National Meteorological Center continued to issue a blue alert for rainstorms and a yellow alert for the typhoon, warning of heavy rainfall over 100 millimeters in Hainan, southwestern Guangdong and southern Guangxi during Monday and Tuesday.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters sent a work team to Hainan on Sunday to guide the preparation work against Typhoon Prapiroon. At a joint work conference held on Sunday, the Ministry of Emergency Management urged local governments to effectively respond to the typhoon and ensure that offshore workers are transferred and ships return to the port for shelter.

More than 26,000 tourists have been evacuated from a tourist island in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local authorities said on Sunday.

The last group of tourists boarded a ferry to leave Weizhou Island on Sunday evening, according to the maritime safety administration of Beihai, the city that administers the island. The ferry service linking the city and the island will be halted on Monday and Tuesday.

Transport and port authorities in Hainan have suspended high-speed rail services circling the island and ferry operations across the Qiongzhou Strait, and advised sailing vessels to take shelter. Many scenic spots and attractions in the popular tourist city Sanya have also been closed temporarily as a result of the typhoon.

(With input from Xinhua)