Beijing, Cities in eastern China suspended ferry services and classes and flights were canceled in Japan today as Typhoon Hinnamnor, the strongest global storm this year, blew its way past Taiwan and the Koreas with fierce winds and heavy rains.

Shanghai grounded ferry services and deployed more than 50,000 police officers to aid with rescues and guide traffic away from danger areas. The eastern business hub of Wenzhou ordered all classes suspended tomorrow (Monday).

Hinnamnor is forecasted to move gradually northward into the East China Sea with maximum sustained winds of 175 kilometers (109 miles) per hour, according to the Hong Kong Observatory.

Evacuations and flight cancellations have been ordered in Japan’s southern Okinawa Island. The typhoon is also expected to bring intense rainfall to the Korean Peninsula, bringing the possibility of flooding.

China’s National Meteorological Center issued a yellow typhoon warning today, and warned of heavy rains in northeastern Zhejiang, Shanghai and self-governing Taiwan.

In Japan, the typhoon lashed Okinawa and nearby islands with heavy rains and fierce winds, threatening flooding and grounding more than 100 flights connecting the islands and parts of the main southern island of Kyushu.

Local officials said the slow-moving typhoon could add to rainfall and risks of flooding in the southern region where dense rain clouds have been stuck.

In Taiwan, over 600 residents in New Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu counties were evacuated to shelters amid the heavy rain and strong winds, according to the island’s Central News Agency.

Source: Oman News Agency