Typhoon Haikui downgraded to storm after China landfall

Typhoon Haikui has lost strength and become a tropical storm after battering Taiwan. (EPA PHOTO)

Thousands of people have been evacuated their homes as Typhoon Haikui made landfall in China's southeastern Fujian province, after battering Taiwan for the past two days.

About 114,400 people on Tuesday were moved from risky areas as the typhoon rolled in with a maximum wind speed of 20 metres per second.

Several areas in Fujian recorded more than 300mm of rain in just over 24 hours. In Fuzhou city, two firefighters were missing after a fire truck carrying nine rescue workers was swept away by floodwaters during a mission, state media reported.

Furniture was seen bobbing up and down in the floodwaters. Vehicles were swept away in the currents and some cars stranded in waterlogged areas were completely submerged, social media posts showed. Schools in Fuzhou city as well as in Xiamen, Quanzhou and Putian were also shut.

Many flights were cancelled at two airports in Fuzhou and Quanzhou, tourist spots and parks were shut, and ports, coastal and river transportation was suspended, state media reported.

The typhoon lost strength and became a tropical storm after its landfall at 5am, the national forecaster reported. It was last reported to be moving over southern Guangdong province, and forecasters expect it to continue to weaken.

Haikui slammed into the province just after Typhoon Saola barrelled into southern Guangdong province over the weekend, killing at least one person and leaving a trail of destruction and flooding in many areas of nearby Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Macau.

Last month, northern and northeasten China had heavy flooding caused by Typhoons Doksuri and Khanun which brought the capital Beijing its heaviest recorded rainfall in 140 years.

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