Tropical storm Bebinca to hit S China

BEIJING - Tropical storm "Bebinca" is expected to arrive in South China's Guangdong province on Saturday afternoon, the first to make landfall in China this year, the National Meteorological Center (NMC) said on Saturday.

Affected by the tropical storm, coastal areas in Hainan and Guangdong provinces were battered by gales and torrential rain, the center reported.

The storm, heading northwest toward Guangdong's coastal areas at 15 to 20 km per hour, is expected to make landfall near Wanning of Hainan and Zhanjiang of Guangdong on Saturday afternoon, the NMC forecasted.

Bebinca, which was formed on Friday, will bring gales and downpour to most of China's South Sea and southern coastal areas. The NMC released a blue alert or lowest-standard warning on Saturday morning.

Local authorities have warned citizens to be on guard against extreme weather conditions and potential damages.

Bebinca is named after a pudding common in Macao.

Besides, strong rainfall will hit southwest Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, central Jiangxi province and southeast Taiwan, the center forecasted.

The high temperature annoying most of China in past days will drop after increasing rainfall from Saturday to Sunday.