"Thanks to an early warning and preparation, no reports have been received about deaths or injuries incurred during the storm in either Hainan or Guangdong, except for three missing people in Guangdong," said Yang Minyi, spokesman for the Guangdong Provincial Government.

The third typhoon to hit China this year, Durian lasted for the shortest period of time, about four days, but was as powerful as its predecessors which killed almost 100 people last month.

With no figures yet as to exact economic losses, Durian ripped out trees, flattened buildings and flooded streets and hundreds of hectares of farmland in Zhanjiang, Yangjiang and Maoming cities in southwestern Guangdong.

Worst hit was Zhanjiang City, where the typhoon first made landfall at 3:30 yesterday morning.

Packing maximum winds of 46 metres per minute, the torrential rains of Durian knocked out power and water lines in Zhanjiang, cutting electricity to 70 percent of the homes, according to Yang.

Final exams scheduled to be held Monday morning in Zhanjiang's middle schools were postponed.

On Donghai Island alone, the typhoon flooded rice paddies and blew down banana and sugarcane trees, causing 400 million yuan (US$48 million) in economic damage, said Xu Zhinong, an official from the island.

Affected by the typhoon, transportation across the Qiongzhou Straits has been shut down since Sunday afternoon, detaining more than 2,000 passengers and over 500 cars.

Meilan Airport in Haikou, the capital of Hainan Province, cancelled 30 flights on Sunday night, holding up about 2,000 passengers till Monday morning.

Since last Saturday, coastal provinces have been keeping watch throughout the night for flooding and other damage due to torrential rain, said Yang.

Rescue efforts have been undertaken across the provinces to help residents and reinstate power and water supplies.

(China Daily 07/03/2001)