Tourists stay at the beach in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, on Oct. 2, 2008. Tropical storm Higos, the 17th this year, is moving towards south China's island province of Hainan, the provincial meteorological station said on Thursday, affecting the ongoing National Day holidays. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

 

    BEIJING, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Tropical storm Higos, the 17th this year, will drop heavy rain on parts of south China's Guangdong and Hainan provinces over the next two days, the National Meteorological Observatory said on Thursday.

    The office advised everyone in those regions to prepare for therain, as well as lightning storms and gale-force winds.

    Tourists in coastal cities of the island province of Hainan, such as Sanya and Bo'ao, have been advised to avoid offshore activities over the next three days.

    Higos was centered about 700 km southeast of Zhuhai, Guangdong,as of 5 p.m. on Thursday, and it was moving north-west at 20 km per hour.

    The storm is gaining momentum as it nears eastern Hainan and the mid-west regions of Guangdong, according to the national observatory.

    Higos, which formed on Tuesday in the Pacific Ocean, comes on the heels of storms Jangmi and Hagupit, which together killed some 20 people in China.

Tropical storm Higos approaches South China 

    HAIKOU, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Tropical storm Higos, the 17th this year, was moving towards south China's island province of Hainan, said the provincial meteorological station on Thursday.

    Formed on Tuesday on the Pacific Ocean, the storm was located at 14.8 degrees north latitude and 119.3 degrees east longitude at 2 a.m. Thursday. It is still gaining momentum while moving northwestwards at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour.