China issues orange alert for Typhoon Khanun

China's National Meteorological Center (NMC) Saturday issued an orange alert for Typhoon Khanun, which is expected to make landfall in the country's southern coastal areas in the early hours of Monday.

At 5 p.m. Saturday, the eye of Khanun, this year's 20th typhoon, was above the South China Sea, 840 km southeast of Xuwen County, south China's Guangdong Province, packing winds of up to 30 meters per second.

The NMC has forecast that it would move northwest at a speed of 20 km per hour, while growing stronger and likely escalating into a super typhoon. It is expected to make landfall in areas between Yangxi, Guangdong and Qionghai, Hainan Province Monday morning.

Regions including Shanghai, Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan will see torrential rain and gales over the weekend.

The NMC suggested local governments take precautions against possible disasters, and ships in affected areas return to port.

China has a four-tier color-coded system for severe weather, with red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.