Guangdong to suspend train operations as typhoon Ragasa approaches

(ECNS) -- Train services across Guangdong were gradually suspended from noon Tuesday as Typhoon Ragasa, the year's 18th, approached with strong winds and heavy rain, according to China Railway Guangzhou Group.

Starting from the early hours of Thursday, train services would be gradually resumed based on the impact of the typhoon.

The National Meteorological Center said on Sunday that Ragasa had intensified into a super typhoon Sunday morning and is expected to make landfall along the coastal areas from Shanwei in Guangdong to Wenchang in Hainan Province between early Wednesday and the afternoon.

Meteorologists have warned that Ragasa is moving rapidly while maintaining strength, making it the most powerful typhoon to hit China this year.

Ragasa is larger than the whole Guangdong Province, according to the Zhuhai Municipal Meteorological Bureau. It added that after entering the South China Sea, Ragasa is expected to shrink, and that its energy would be concentrated within the eye.

The city will gradually suspend school, work, production, transportation, and business starting from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday and close bridges and roads if necessary.

The typhoon will also severely affect Jiangmen City in Guangdong starting Tuesday. The local government on Monday decided to deploy the same measures as Zhuhai across the city.

(By Zhang Dongfang)