By Samuel Shen and Ryan Woo

SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Shanghai halted transportation links, recalled ships, and shut tourism spots, including Shanghai Disney Resort, on Sunday as it braced for Typhoon Bebinca, potentially the strongest tropical cyclone to hit the city since 1949.

The Category 1 typhoon, packing maximum sustained wind speeds near its center of about 144 kph (89 mph), was around 400 km southeast of Shanghai as of 5:00 p.m. (0900 GMT). It is expected to make landfall along China’s eastern coast after midnight on Monday.

The China Meteorological Administration issued a red alert for the typhoon on Sunday afternoon, warning of gales and heavy rainfalls in eastern China.

The strongest storm to make landfall in Shanghai in recent decades was Typhoon Gloria in 1949, which tore through the city with gusts of 144 kph. Shanghai was last threatened by a direct hit in 2022 by the powerful Typhoon Muifa, which instead landed 300 km away in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province.

Shanghai is generally spared from strong typhoons that hit further south, like Yagi, a destructive Category 4 storm that recently affected southern Hainan province. However, officials are cautious about Category 1 Bebinca.

All flights will be canceled at Shanghai’s two airports from 8 p.m. local time on Sunday, with the operator, Shanghai Airport (Group) Co, announcing further adjustments based on the typhoon’s impact.

Shanghai railway station has suspended certain services to ensure passenger safety, and the Shenzhen government stated that trains to and from Shanghai will be halted.

Resorts in Shanghai, including Shanghai Disney Resort, Jinjiang Amusement Park, and Shanghai Wild Animal Park, are temporarily closed, and most ferries have been suspended to and from Chongming Island, known as ‘the gateway to the Yangtze River’.

In Zhejiang, ships have been recalled, and several parks in Hangzhou have announced closures.

Bebinca’s arrival coincides with the Mid-Autumn Festival, a nationwide three-day holiday when many Chinese travel or engage in outdoor activities.

China’s Ministry of Water Resources issued a Level-IV emergency response on Saturday for potential flooding in Shanghai and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui.