Super Typhoon Bavi: Shanghai expects fallout from Friday, Beijing halts outdoor activities
Across region, residents stock up, airlines cancel or reschedule flights, school is disrupted and zoo appeals for help finding lost animals
Satellite imagery from China’s official weather forecaster shows Bavi covering nearly 940,000 sq km (363,000 square miles) – an area about nine times the size of the eastern province of Zhejiang or 850 times that of Hong Kong.
Hui Xinyi, a high school English tutor in the Zhejiang capital of Hangzhou, is among those constantly refreshing weather apps and scrolling through social media for updates.
“Whether it will actually make landfall here or just brush past is still up in the air. It’s this uncertainty that makes people really panic,” she said.
Living on the 25th floor of a high-rise building, Hui plans to tape her windows and stock up on instant food and bottled water in case strong winds cause power or water shortages. She said disruptions might force her to move her classes online or postpone them altogether.