Typhoon Saudel makes third landfall in southeastern China after regaining strength

Typhoon Saudel made landfall in southeastern China for the third time on Thursday, reaching Fujian province after an unusual cycle of weakening and renewed intensification.

The storm crossed the coast near Gulei, in Zhangpu county, at about 6:30 a.m. local time, according to Chinese state media. Its maximum winds reached 23 meters per second near the center, and its minimum pressure stood at 985 hectopascals.

Saudel first struck eastern Zhejiang twice last Friday, in Taizhou and nearby Wenzhou, before moving southwest and losing strength. China’s National Meteorological Center stopped classifying it as a tropical cyclone on August 30. Its remnants strengthened again over the northwestern South China Sea early on September 1, restoring the storm’s original name and number.

Meteorological authorities kept yellow alerts in place for both the typhoon and torrential rain. The alerts are the third-highest level in China’s four-tier system. The heaviest rainfall was expected in Fujian, southern Jiangxi and eastern Guangdong, with 250 to 300 millimeters possible in parts of southeastern Fujian and eastern Guangdong. Hourly rainfall could exceed 70 millimeters in some areas.

Forecasters warned of flash floods, landslides and mudslides in southeastern Zhejiang, eastern Fujian and eastern Guangdong. The storm’s effects were expected to continue through Thursday and Friday. Flooding on Wednesday trapped more than 2,500 teachers and students at a school in Wenzhou, where authorities used drones to deliver food and drinking water. In Quanzhou, heavy rain partially collapsed a cemetery and damaged several graves. Classes were suspended in parts of Fujian and Guangdong, while rail services were disrupted after the storm’s earlier passage forced the evacuation of about 248,000 people and led to more than 200 flight cancellations.