After losing strength and becoming a tropical storm, Kong-rey was expected to impact Shanghai and neighbouring regions along China’s eastern coastline with severe rainfall and strong winds on Friday.
The system moved across Taiwan as a typhoon on Thursday, causing tree falls and triggering landslides that blocked roads and damaged residential structures. The disaster resulted in two fatalities and left more than 500 individuals injured.
Officials in Taiwan’s Hualien province confirmed they had established contact with two Czech tourists previously considered missing. The Central News Agency reported the pair had set up camp in Taroko National Park and were found unharmed.
Kong-rey, bearing a Cambodian-origin name, was tracking northeastward along China’s coast. The National Meteorological Center indicated it could strike Zhejiang province Friday afternoon before moving back toward the ocean.
The weather system was predicted to affect Shanghai and areas within Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, potentially delivering rainfall amounts between 10 to 12 centimeters (4 to 5 inches) in certain locations.
Maritime authorities in Zhejiang and Fujian provinces halted several ferry services in preparation for the approaching storm.
In Taiwan’s capital Taipei, light precipitation continued Friday morning, while most educational institutions and offices resumed operations, with public services largely returning to normal.
The weather system had previously moved north of the Philippines earlier in the week, leading to new evacuations shortly after Tropical Storm Trami caused 145 fatalities the week before.
The intense precipitation partially attributed to Trami claimed seven lives in China’s Hainan province, a popular tourist destination known for its coastal attractions, as the storm passed near the southern region.