Joint efforts to prepare farmers for typhoon

Cha Guangju picks grapes at her fruit garden in Xiangshan county, Ningbo before Typhoon Doksuri arrives. [Photo/Ningbo Evening News]

As typhoons approach, the government and individuals in Xiangshan county, Ningbo joined efforts to help reduce the impact of the disaster on fruit farmers.

Three years ago, Cha Guangju came from Yunnan province to Xiaotang township in Xiangshan, to grow grapes. Cha's grape garden covers an area of more than 18,000 square meters, and 2,000 square meters of grapes have entered harvest.

Typhoon Doksuri made landfall in East China’s Fujian province on July 28 and triggered strong winds and heavy rainfalls in Zhejiang province, and Typhoon Khanun, the sixth typhoon of this year, is moving closer.

"We were worried about the fruits when we learned about the approach of the two typhoons, which would bring heavy losses to the garden," said Cha.

To help farmers like Cha, local authorities and associations launched a charitable action to sell the grapes. Public transportation companies also joined the efforts, transporting the grapes from grape gardens to customers.

As of July 30, Cha had received orders for 850 boxes of grapes, which weighed about 3,000 kilos.

Le Xiuwei, leader of a local volunteer group who used to be engaged in e-commerce, also played to her strengths to help three farmers sell 150 kilos of grapes. She also helped them pick, package, and deliver the fruits.