Tropical storm Pabuk swept through China's eastern provinces late on Wednesday, unleashing heavy rainfall in east China's coastal provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian.

The storm is moving westwards at a speed of 25 kilometers per hour toward southern Guangdong Province, according to the Fujian Meteorological Observatory.

The provincial flood control headquarters said that another storm, Wutip, would hit the provinces soon. More than 266,000 people working out at sea have been recalled to land.

Wutip means butterfly. The storm coalesced in the Pacific Ocean to the east of the Philippines at 8:00 AM on Wednesday. The storm's eye is packing winds of 18 meters per second. It is moving northwest at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour.

The observatory said that the storm is expected to land in central-south Taiwan on Thursday and hit central Fujian on Thursday night.

The Zhejiang meteorological observatory said that Wutip might follow Pabuk's path. It will whip up waves as high as six meters.

The observatory said Wutip's path is more unpredictable than Pabuk's, and that it will unleash torrential rain of up to 300 millimeters in some areas.

The provincial flood control headquarters said that they have mobilized troops and police to increase patrol and stack sandbags around ponds and reservoirs.

(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2007)