[Special report] [Photo gallery]

HANGZHOU, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- At least 466,000 people, including 266,000 in Fujian and 200,000 in Zhejiang have been evacuated as Saomai, which has grown to a powerful typhoon, is approaching the coastal areas of the two provinces in east China.

Meteorologists said Saomai, the eighth storm to hit China this year, would probably land between Lianjiang of Fujian and Yuhuan of Zhejiang on Thursday noon or evening.

At around 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday, local observatory said, Saomai, which is the Vietnamese name for the planet Venus, was located at latitude 25.7 north and longitude 124.4 east, approximately 480 km southeast of Zhejiang's Wenzhou.

With winds recorded at 216 km per hour at its eye, the typhoon was moving northwest at a speed of 30 km per hour at midnight Wednesday. Forecasters from Zhejiang said Wenzhou would be under ahead-on attack by the powerful storm. Enditem