The National Meteorological Centre issued a red alert, the highest level, on Friday morning for typhoon Chan Hom, whose centre was spotted 550 km southeast off the coast of Zhejiang Province, reported Xinhua.
It is moving towards the north-west region from the East China Sea and is expected to hit somewhere between Fuding in Fujian Province and Xiangshan in Zhejiang Province.
Almost 20,000 people have been evacuated and 20,000 fishing boats returned to harbour for shelter in Zhejiang as the province upgraded its emergency response by two levels to prepare for the typhoon.
Waves, as tall as 10 metres, have been reported off the coast of Zhejiang in the sea.
Shipping routes to Taiwan from Zhejiang have also been closed since Thursday.
The Fujian provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters have asked all people on coastal fishing farms in Ningde, Fuzhou, Pingtan and Putian to evacuate by Friday morning.
Meanwhile, Shanghai has also sent out a typhoon alert on Friday, warning of gale starting Friday afternoon and heavy rain on Saturday. (ANI)