China cancels schools, flights as it braces for Ragasa, one of the strongest typhoons in years

Hong Kong | Southern Chinese cities scaled back many aspects of daily life on Tuesday with school and business closures and flight cancellations as the region braced for one of the strongest typhoons in years that has already killed three people and led to the displacement of thousands of others in the Philippines.

Hong Kong's observatory said Super Typhoon Ragasa, which was packing maximum sustained winds near the centre of about 230 kph, is expected to move west-northwest at about 22 kph across the northern part of the South China Sea and edge closer to the coast of Guangdong province, the southern Chinese economic powerhouse.

China's National Meteorological Centre forecast the typhoon would make landfall in the coastal area between Shenzhen city and Xuwen county in Guangdong province on Wednesday.

Already hoisting a strong wind signal, the observatory in Hong Kong will issue storm warning signal No. 8, the third-highest in the city's weather alert system, on Tuesday afternoon and will assess the necessity of upgrading the signal on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.

The city categorises tropical cyclones with maximum sustained winds near the centre of 185 kph or above as super typhoons to make residents extra vigilant about the approach of more intense storms.

The water level is forecast to rise about 2 metres over coastal areas in the Asian financial hub on Wednesday morning, and the maximum water level in some areas could hit 4 to 5 metres above the typical lowest sea level.

The government said the water levels could be similar to those recorded during Typhoon Hato in 2017 and Typhoon Mangkhut in 2018 - estimated to have caused the city direct economic losses worth over 1 billion Hong Kong dollars USD 154 million and 4.6 billion Hong Kong dollars (about USD 590 million), respectively.

Residents living in flood-prone areas have already put sandbags and barriers at their doors, while others have put tape on windows and glass doors to brace for strong winds. Many people stockpiled food and daily supplies on Monday, as some market vendors reported that their goods were selling out fast.

Schools were closed in Hong Kong and the neighbouring city of Macao. Other cities such as the Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen and Foshan in Guangdong province and Haikou in Hainan province ordered class cancellations and a gradual suspension of other businesses and transportation.

Hundreds of flights were cancelled in Hong Kong. Shenzhen airport will halt all flights from Tuesday night. The Macao government activated its emergency response mechanism as it expected Ragasa would pass within 100 kilometers to the south of the casino hub on Wednesday morning.

At least six people were injured and over 7,000 people were evacuated in Taiwan when the typhoon swept south of the island, and over 8,000 households were impacted by a power outage, the Central News Agency reported.

In the Philippines, Ragasa left at least three people dead and five others missing and displaced more than 17,500 people in flooding and landslides set off by the most powerful storm to hit the Southeast Asian archipelago this year, the country's disaster-response agency and provincial officials said.

The dead included a 74-year-old man, who died while being brought to a hospital after being pinned in one of four vehicles that were partly buried by mud, rocks and trees that cascaded down a mountainside onto a narrow road on Monday in the mountain town of Tuba in Benguet province, officials said.

Two other villagers died in the storm, including a resident in Calayan town, a cluster of islands off northern Cagayan province where the super typhoon made landfall on Monday, officials said without providing details.

Ragasa, Tagalog for scramble, prompted the Philippine government on Monday to close schools and government offices in the densely populated capital region and 29 northern provinces. Fishing boats and ferries were prohibited from venturing into very rough seas and domestic flights were cancelled.(AP)