East China warns of Typhoon Goni impact

FUZHOU - East China's Fujian province warned of gales brought by the approaching Typhoon Goni on Friday.

The typhoon, packing maximum winds of 172 kilometers per hour (kph), is moving north by west towards the eastern seas of Taiwan, at a rate of six kph, according to the Fujian meteorological department.

At 5:00 a.m. on Friday, the eye was 780 kilometers southeast of Xiamen City, a coastal city in Fujian.

Goni is expected to bring gales to a large area off the coast of East China Sea, including the Taiwan Strait and Diaoyu Islands.

Fujian flood control authorities are preparing to evacuate vessels ahead of the typhoon.

Typhoon Goni spun west across the Pacific Ocean and became a super typhoon on Wednesday. China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has ordered eastern Chinese provinces to brace for the Typhoon, and remain on alert for flashfloods and landslides.