BEIJING, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- China's national weather observatory on Thursday renewed a blue alert as Typhoon Damrey continues to bring gales to the South China Sea.

At 5 a.m. Thursday, the eye of Damrey was over the South China Sea, 1,060 km east of Ho Chi Minh City, packing winds of up to 23 meters per second, according to the National Meteorological Center (NMC).

Under the joint influence of the typhoon and a cold front, the southern part of the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, most of the South China Sea and the Beibu Gulf will be hit by strong gales from Thursday evening to Friday evening.

The typhoon is expected to make landfall in southern Vietnam on Saturday morning, according to the NMC.

The NMC suggested local governments take precautions against possible disasters, and ships in affected areas return to port.

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