The Ministry of Civil Affairs issued a notice to eight provinces and five central-level storage facilities to start disaster relief work, as typhoon Fung Wong struck China's eastern and southern regions with heavy rain and strong winds.

The office of National Natural Disaster Reduction Committee and the Civil Affairs Ministry sent a disaster relief team to Fujian and Zhejiang provinces after starting the emergency response system, according to the notice published on Monday on the ministry's website.

Typhoon Fung Wong, the eighth tropical storm to hitting China this year, hit Fujian Province at 10:00 PM on Monday, bringing heavy rain. The eye made landfall at Donghan Town, Fuqing City with winds of up to 119 kilometers per hour.

The notice ordered authorities to prepare for disasters. Public safety should get top priority, with shelters and supplies readied in advance, the notice said. Civil affairs departments should be staffed around the clock.

Fung Wong will be the strongest tropical storm in China so far this year, according to observatories in Fujian, Guangdong, Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces.

Zhejiang had evacuated 338,573 people and called back 27,656 fishing boats by late Monday, according to provincial officials.

(Xinhua News Agency July 29, 2008)