Ships dock at a port in Haikou, capital city of South China's Hainan province on Oct 23, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

The Hainan Meteorological Service renewed a warning for Typhoon Molave at noon on Tuesday, saying it has turned into a strong typhoon with winds up to 150 kilometers per hour at its center 450 kilometers southeast of Sansha city as of 9 am.

The service said Molave, the 18th typhoon this year, is moving northwest at a speed of about 25 km/h and will head for and land on Vietnam's central coast on Wednesday morning after sweeping over the South China Sea south of the Zhongsha and Xisha islands.

Accompanied by cold air, Molave is expected to bring a torrential rain to most parts of the Hainan Island on Tuesday night and Wednesday.

Shipping services across the Qiongzhou Strait, which links Hainan with Guangdong province, will be suspended from 5 pm on Tuesday, the local maritime safety bureau said.

Hainan has been repeatedly slammed by strong winds and rain over the past two weeks, with typhoon Nangka, the first to hit the island this year, on Oct 13, forcing the cancellation of more than 190 flights, the suspension of ferry, rail and expressway transportation services and the closure of schools and scenic spots.

China has a four-tier color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe weather, followed by orange, yellow and blue.