Authorities in neighboring Zhejiang Province evacuated 1.24 million people and arranged shelters for 41,000 boats as Typhoon Matsa churned toward the coast last night.
Zhejiang's meteorological bureau forecast that the storm was likely to crash into the coast between Wenling and Yuhuan counties by noon today, bringing strong winds and torrential rain.
The coastal cities of Ningbo, Wenzhou and Taizhou were being pelted by a heavy downpour last night with rainfall up to 100 millimeters. In Zhoushan Island, rainfall measured 238mm.
The zhejiang meteorological bureau warned of landslides and torrents of mud and rocks in the coastal areas and the southern parts of the province.
The provincial government arranged patrols at reservoirs and embankments and began controlled water releases in rivers and canals to prevent flood walls from overflowing when the worst of the storm arrives.
Matsa is the second typhoon to hit Zhejiang this summer. Typhoon Haitang swept the southeastern coast of the Chinese mainland on July 19 and caused 7.22 billion yuan (US$870 million) in economic losses.
Matsa could be more devastating than Typhoon Winnie, which pummeled Zhejiang in August 1997, killing more than 50 people and causing US$2.5 billion in damage.
Earlier yesterday, Matsa lashed northern Taiwan with torrential rain and strong winds, closing schools, government offices and financial markets in the provincial capital, Taipei.
Taiwan's financial markets, government offices and many commercial areas were closed yesterday. Several international flights were grounded.
After a night of pounding rain, Taipei's normally busy streets were empty as residents heeded the government's warning to stay at home and be on alert for flash floods and landslides.
No casualties were reported so far, but the agricultural council put initial farm damage at NT$36 million (US$1.1 million).
Television footage showed mudslides blocking roads in the mountains and a washed-away bridge in rural areas.
"We make necessary preparations every time before a typhoon hits, but the place is still flooded," a bare-footed woman in a village in the northern county of Hsinchu told a Taiwan TV station as she stood before her flooded home next to a pile of sandbags.
"We have been through too many scary floods," she added.
Hsinchu county has been hit hardest by the typhoon, with over 1 meter of rain recorded in the past 36 hours.
More than 50,000 households were left without electricity and 100,000 families had no tap water. Loading at two seaports in the north and northeast has been stopped.