More than 500,000 evacuated

More than half-a-million people have been evacuated as severe tropical storm Bilis hit south-east China, after killing 14 people in the northern Philippines, state media says. The storm landed around midday local time in Fujian province's Xiapu county, Xinhua news agency said, citing sources with Fujian's meteorological observatory. Over 256,000 evacuees, many of whom are seafood farmers and fishermen, were moved from their coastal homes in Fujian early Thursday, the Fujian water resources department website said. Some 42,000 fishing boats were also directed back to harbour, Xinhua said. Another 260,000 people were evacuated from dangerous areas of neighbouring Zhejiang province, the Zhejiang water resources department's website said. The storm was heading north-west at around 15-20 kilometres per hour and packing winds of up to 108 kilometres per hour near its centre, Xinhua said. Fujian's education bureau ordered schools to suspend classes and cancel outdoor activities. All parks also were closed. Passenger liners in the province had suspended services, and flights to Hong Kong and elsewhere have been cancelled while those to Beijing have been delayed, state television CCTV said. Fifteen rescue teams have been mobilised to rescue people who might be stranded, CCTV said. Television footage showed large waves crashing on coastlines. In urban areas, residents continued to ride their bicycles and walk through flooded streets. The storm brought heavy rain to Fujian, with the provincial capital Fuzhou getting as much as 25 centimetres of rain from Thursday night, Xinhua said. Meanwhile, workers were checking reservoirs in preparation for flooding due to the rain, Xinhua said. Nearby provinces were also bracing for the storm. In Zhejiang, in addition to evacuating 260,000 residents, officials called 22,540 boats and ships back to shore as of Friday morning, the water department said. Bilis lashed the northern Philippines on Thursday. The 14 victims were killed by falling trees, flash floods and landslides, officials said. The storm also hit Taiwan after moving from the Philippines and before heading to mainland China. http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200607/s1687283.htm