Over 620,000 people living in the Yangtze River Delta region have been evacuated from their homes as severe typhoon Haikui is expected to make landfall in northern Zhejiang Province early Wednesday, according to local government sources.

These precautions were taken as Haikui is following a course similar to the one taken by Typhoon Matsa - a storm that killed 12 people in the region in 2005 - according to weather authorities.

The National Meteorological Bureau raised the region's typhoon warning level to red, its highest, at 6 pm Tuesday as the storm moved west-northwest from its location 280 kilometers southeast of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, the coastal area where Haikui is forecast to make landfall.

"Haikui will bring torrential rains and strong winds to the Yangtze River Delta region till Thursday," Lou Maoyuan, deputy director of the Zhejiang Meteorological Bureau, told the Global Times. "Coastal areas can expect to see strong gales with wind speed of up to 170 kilometers per hour."

Weather authorities predicted that Haikui will bring 200 to 400 millimeters of rain to northern Zhejiang and Shanghai Wednesday, and called for residents in low-lying and coastal areas to move to higher ground in case of flooding.

The National Maritime Environmental Forecasting Center raised its wave warning level to red, its highest, at 2 pm Tuesday.

In Zhejiang, waves up to 5.9 meters high slammed the coast of Xiangshan, a coastal area of Ningbo, forcing thousands of vessels to seek refuge. The Zhoushan city government has set up shelters for over 16,000 fishermen away from coastal areas.

Severe typhoon Haikui is the first tropical cyclone to make landfall in Zhejiang since 2007.

Meanwhile, in Shanghai, the civil affairs bureau has set up shelters in sports stadiums and schools for 374,000 people evacuated from their homes in Jinshan District and Pudong New Area.

The Shanghai municipal government announced that all summer classes will be suspended Wednesday and encouraged offices to give employees time off, bringing the city close to a standstill as Haikui approaches.

Meanwhile, over 2,000 maintenance workers have been deployed to monitor high-risk areas, such as construction sites and the banks of the Huangpu River, the Shanghai Municipal Flood Control Administration told the Global Times.

China Southern Airlines announced on its official website that all flights departing and arriving after 6 pm Tuesday at Shanghai's Hongqiao and Pudong airports will be canceled.  And 159 flights had been canceled at both airports as of 4 pm Tuesday.

Shanghai is on high alert as Haikui follows a similar path to the one taken by typhoon Matsa, which killed seven people and toppled 2,700 trees and 400 power lines citywide seven years ago.

The National Meteorological Center predicted Tuesday that Haikui would move northwest toward central Jiangsu Province after making landfall early Wednesday. The severe typhoon is likely to impact the Yangtze River Delta region for over three days.