School classes and production activities have been suspended in parts of Fujian province after Typhoon Saudel, the 18th typhoon of the year, made landfall in the province's Zhangzhou around 6:30 am on Thursday, according to China Central Television.

This was Typhoon Saudel's third landfall along China's eastern coast this year.

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Heavy rains brought by the typhoon have affected several county-level areas in Zhangzhou, including Zhangpu, Zhao'an, and Dongshan, where local authorities have suspended work, production, classes, and market activities.

In Fuzhou, the provincial capital, and Quanzhou, all educational activities have been suspended, covering kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, vocational schools, universities, and training institutions.

All ferry services in Xiamen were also suspended from Thursday.

The typhoon has brought torrential rain to Zhangzhou, with some areas experiencing exceptionally heavy rainfall. From 5 am Wednesday to 5 am Thursday, accumulated rainfall exceeded 100 millimeters at 148 monitoring stations across the city, including eight stations that recorded more than 400 millimeters, local media reported.

As of 10 pm on Wednesday, more than 20,000 official deployments had been made to support the emergency response, while 14,000 rescue personnel had been put on standby. More than 4,500 vehicles and pieces of equipment had also been put on standby to respond to the heavy rainfall.

Since Tuesday, Fuding in Ningde, Fujian province, has also experienced heavy rainfall, with local 24-hour accumulated precipitation exceeding 400 millimeters in several places.

The downpours caused severe flooding on some roads and left residents trapped in their homes. According to the local fire and rescue authorities, from midnight to 2 pm on Wednesday, the Ningde fire and rescue brigade received more than 120 calls and rescued or transferred 43 people and evacuated another 115.

In Zherong county, Ningde, torrential to exceptionally heavy rain has also hit the area over the past two days. Landslides and road collapses were reported along several national and provincial highways, disrupting traffic.

Township officials and emergency response personnel have been dispatched to the affected areas, where efforts to reinforce roads and eliminate safety hazards are ongoing.

Life disrupted in Guangdong

Several areas in Guangdong province issued service and school suspensions on Thursday, after Typhoon Saudel made landfall in neighboring Fujian province, bringing storms, gale-force winds, and heavy downpours.

School and kindergarten closures extended throughout Chaozhou on Thursday, after prior closures were issued in the city's Raoping county. Class suspensions in Shantou's Chenghai district and Nan'ao county remain in effect, local authorities said.

China Railway Guangzhou Group suspended some high-speed train services departing from Shenzhen North Railway Station beginning Wednesday.

Heavy to torrential rain with isolated extreme downpours lashed eastern Guangdong from Tuesday to Wednesday, according to the provincial meteorological authorities.