M​assive waves pounded the eastern Chinese coastline as Typhoon Muifa, now weakened to a tropical storm, approached on Wednesday.

P​hotos show large waves lashing Wenling in Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province, and walls of water crashing on the bank of the Qiantang River in Hangzhou. In Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, pedestrians cowered as waves splashed them on a walkway along the coast.

T​he storm made landfall at 12:30 a.m. Thursday with winds gusting up to 77 mph, The Associated Press reported. By later that morning, Muifa had weakened to a tropical storm, and was expected to weaken further throughout the day, according to China's National Meteorological Center.

M​uifa brought winds and heavy rains to Shanghai overnight and continued up the coast Thursday. No major damage was reported in Shanghai, but there were reports of flooding further south, in the city of Ningbo. More than 1 million people were evacuated from Shanghai and other cities in Zhejiang Province ahead of landfall, according to state media.

M​ufia was the twelfth typhoon of 2022. CGTN America tweeted that 10 typhoons have made landfall in Shanghai since 1949, with Muifa being the most powerful.

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