Major typhoon Saola will hit southern China and Hong Kong

The powerful typhoon Saola threatens to strike southern China on Friday with winds considered the strongest in the region ever recorded, prompting residents of Hong Kong and Shenzhen to take shelter.

Mainland China issued a highest-level warning on Thursday as the massive typhoon, according to government media, is expected to make landfall "in coastal areas stretching from Huilai to Hong Kong" on Friday afternoon or Saturday night.

Guangdong province declared a Level I emergency due to the winds. China's Xinhua News Agency reported that the Chinese Ministry of Transport has deployed 16 rescue ships and nine rescue helicopters in the areas that the typhoon may affect.

The city of Shenzhen (south), with a population of 17.7 million people, decided to "close offices, stores, and markets starting at 16:00 (08:00 GMT) and suspend public transportation starting at 19:00," according to a statement from the Emergency Management Agency, warning that the typhoon "may cause a strong storm in the city."

The agency added, "Except for emergency response personnel and livelihood support staff, it is advised not to go out on the street," and clarified that "the city will open all shelters for everyone to take refuge in."

Hong Kong, the neighboring city, closed its stock exchange and schools on Friday and canceled all its flights.

At around 02:40, the financial center issued a T8 warning on a scale of ten degrees, and the stock exchange announced that "morning trading sessions for all markets will be canceled."

The city's meteorological observatory said that Typhoon Saola was about 180 kilometers east and southeast of Hong Kong at around 11:00 (03:00 GMT).

The observatory noted that the large typhoon may rotate around an area less than 100 kilometers to the south, causing a storm around Victoria Harbour.

The observatory added, "There may be heavy rainfall," explaining that the eastern coastal areas may witness water levels similar to those caused by Typhoon Mangkhut in 2018 when more than 300 people were injured in Hong Kong.

The observatory also stated that the large typhoon will be accompanied by "heavy rains and strong winds," noting that the weather "will deteriorate rapidly" throughout the day.

Shop facades and windows of homes were protected with adhesive tape all over Hong Kong in preparation for the typhoon, while office buildings near Victoria Harbour fortified entrances to prevent water damage.

Hong Kong's Airport Authority said that departing flights in the morning were "mostly normal," but as of 14:00 local time, "most incoming and outgoing flights have been canceled."

Wing Yung, director-general of operations at the airport authority, announced, "So far, 366 flights have been canceled and 40 have been delayed (...) thanks to the support of airlines and our various service providers, we have managed to secure 600 flights normally today."

Cathay Pacific, the Hong Kong-based airline, canceled all its flights to and from Hong Kong between 06:00 GMT on Friday and 02:00 GMT on Saturday.

Hong Kong Express, its low-cost subsidiary, announced that it had canceled 70 flights on Friday and Saturday to and from Hong Kong.

Authorities in Macau, the neighboring region to Hong Kong, said they are considering issuing a T8 alert on Saturday.



AFP