Taiwan, China batten down hatches as super typhoon approaches

Waves are seen behind a girl as Typhoon Nepartak approaches, in Yilan, Taiwan July 7, 2016. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

TAIPEI/BEIJING (Reuters) - Taiwan and China began battening down the hatches on Thursday ahead of the arrival of super Typhoon Nepartak, the first of the year, with fears in China that storm could worsen already severe flooding in the east of the country.

The typhoon is expected to make landfall on Taiwan's mountainous but sparsely populated east coast in the early hours of Friday, where it will loose much of its strength, before crossing over the Taiwan Strait and hitting China on Saturday.