Typhoon Usagi kills 25 upon landfall in Guangdong

A man runs away from big waves at a dock in Shantou, Guangdong province on Sept 22, 2013. [Photo/Xinhua]

Typhoon Usagi has killed at least 25 people after making landfall in south China's Guangdong province Sunday evening, according to the provincial flood control headquarters on Monday.

Thirteen deaths were reported in Shanwei city, where 24 others were injured in accidents during the storm, according to official tallies.

Usagi -- Japanese for rabbit -- was designated a super typhoon on Saturday after it passed through the Philippines and Taiwan, moving toward China's mainland. Although its power weakened on Sunday, the storm's winds still reached a speed of 45 meters per second at its eye upon landfall in Shanwei at 7:40 p.m. on Sunday.

Usagi has devastated the eastern part of Guangdong, with trees blown down and water and electricity supply cut off in several counties in Shanwei.

As the rain stopped on Monday, local residents were mobilized to help clean up debris and branches on roads to ease traffic.

The provincial flood control headquarters said the typhoon has caused sea water encroachment in coastal areas, river overflow and landslides in rural regions.

On Monday, 14 cities in Guangdong, including the provincial capital of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Zhuhai, as well as neighboring Hong Kong and Macao, had still suspended school classes and air, railway and shipping traffic as a precaution against the storm.

The National Disaster Reduction Commission and the Ministry of Civil Affairs has dispatched expert teams to typhoon-hit regions to help disaster relief work. The local disaster relief office has also dispatched work teams to affected areas.

According to the local civil affairs bureau, more than 3.56 million people in Guangdong have been affected by Usagi, and 226,000 people have been relocated.

The typhoon has also caused 7,100 homes to collapse and resulted in direct economic losses of 3.24 billion yuan (529.5 million US dollars).

Before the typhoon made landfall, Guangdong called more than 47,647 fishing boats to harbor, and more than 19,670 residents were taken to temporary shelters.

(Updated)