Typhoon Bavi batters eastern China

Typhoon Bavi, brought heavy rainfall to the eastern ‌coast on Sunday and lashed densely populated cities with violent winds.

Bavi had weakened by Sunday morning to a tropical storm as it pushed inland, but forecasters warned that the France-sized storm system could unleash prolonged and widespread rainfall across eastern and northern China in the coming days.

Nearly 2 million ​people were evacuated ahead of Bavi's arrival, mostly in Zhejiang province.

More than 1,300 trees fell across Yueqing, with more than 700 of them uprooted entirely, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Emergency crews on Sunday deployed excavators and chainsaws to clear waterlogged streets littered with fallen trees.

In the city's mountainous north, footage aired by CCTV showed a landslide that sent large boulders tumbling onto a mountain road, while swollen river waters submerged nearby trees.

As it approached China, Bavi passed ‌northern Taiwan ⁠on Saturday, bringing strong winds and driving rain across much of the island. The storm dumped nearly 80 cm (31 inches) of rain in one area in the northern county of Miaoli.

Taiwan's fire department said on Sunday that 134 people had been injured, mainly due to falling off motorbikes, slipping or being struck by objects. It reported no deaths. The transport ministry said 137 international flights had been cancelled on Sunday, along with 62 domestic trips.

The ​disruption also extended to China's transport networks. ​In Zhejiang's provincial capital, Hangzhou, ⁠two major train stations suspended all services and 327 flights were cancelled at Xiaoshan International Airport.

In neighbouring Shanghai, a total of 1,620 train trips and 684 flights were cancelled, state-backed The Paper reported.

Scientists have warned China could face more extreme weather this year ⁠with the ​expected emergence of the El Nino weather pattern, which can drive up temperatures and shift ​typhoon tracks westward toward the country's coast.

-Reuters