The tenth tropical storm this year might strike southeast China Thursday night or Friday, bringing waves as high as six meters, said local flood control officials Wednesday.

The storm could make landfall in the coastal areas between eastern Guangdong and southern Fujian Provinces, said Guangdong Provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters in a statement.

The storm was tracked at 21 degrees north latitude and 119.4 degrees east longitude in the South China Sea at 6:00PM For the next 12 hours, it is expected to move westward at a speed of 10 to 15 km per hour, said the statement.

Further, the storm was packing wind gusts of 72 kilometers per hour near its center at 6 p.m. Torrential rains of 30 to 80 mm are expected in central and eastern Guangdong if landfall is made.

Headquarters officials have asked fishing boats to stay clear of the waters east of the Pearl River estuary. Checks on reservoirs should also be beefed up, they said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 9, 2010)