BEIJING -- China has completed verification of the country's seawater warning levels, according to the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) Wednesday.

Since 2012, the SOA has re-verified seawater warning levels in 11 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities and divided China's coastal areas into 259 warning areas.

"The verified warning levels will help prevent or reduce ocean disasters," said Wang Hua from SOA.

The seawater warning level refers to the level of coastal water that warns of potential tide disasters being met or exceeded.

China's meteorological department will issue severe weather alerts based on the warning level, with red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.