Thirteen killed as China is hit by a major typhoon

Thirteen people were killed and 16 were missing in eastern China on Saturday in a landslide triggered by a major typhoon, which also caused hundreds of flight cancellations and the evacuation of more than one million people, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Lekima made landfall as a typhoon on Saturday around 1 a.m. local time near Shitangzhen, in the province of Zhejiang. At the time it came ashore, the dangerous winds made the typhoon equivalent to a category 3 hurricane in the North Atlantic and East Pacific Ocean Basins.

In anticipation of Lekima’s landfall, the Chinese weather bureau issued a red alert on Friday morning, warning residents of the threat for strong winds, heavy rainfall and coastal impacts. The country has a four-stage color-coded warning system, with red representing the most severe weather.

Via AccuWeather / CGTN