Nearly 80,000 evacuated as typhoon lashes south China

BEIJING

Nearly 80,000 people have been evacuated in a southern Chinese city as a strong typhoon lashed the region, damaging dikes and dam gates.

The state-run China Daily reported Saturday that more than 570 flights in the city of Shenzhen in Guangdong province were canceled Friday due to Typhoon Haima.

State news agency Xinhua cited the disaster relief office of nearby Shanwei city -- where the storm made landfall shortly after noon Friday -- as saying that Haima resulted in 59 dike ruptures, and damage to 21 dam gates and 179 water facilities.

It quoted a senior official at the provincial disaster relief office as saying that the danger of flooding and landslides, especially in mountainous areas, is "very high" since the ground is still saturated with moisture from a previous typhoon.

He Guoqing also warned that water levels at many dams had reached “dangerous” levels.

In Huizhou City, 21 people were trapped inside a flooded shoe factory, before being rescued.

Heavy downpour is expected to continue in several cities over the weekend.

Last month, another typhoon -- Meranti -- left around 30 people dead and 15 missing in China and Taiwan.

Typhoon Megi later hit the region, leaving more than 20 dead and around 17 missing.