Super Typhoon Ragasa struck the northeastern Philippines on Monday with winds equal to a Category 5 hurricane, prompting mass evacuations, school closures and hundreds of flight cancellations across the region as it bore down on Hong Kong and mainland China.
Ragasa had sustained wind speeds of 160 miles per hour, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Hawaii, making it the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane. It was forecast to move Monday across the main Philippine island of Luzon, where authorities have warned of “life-threatening conditions.”
The Philippines’ weather bureau forecast floods and landslides, with more than 8 inches of rainfall expected in northern parts of the country. More than 10,000 people were evacuated and schools and government offices were closed in the capital of Manila and elsewhere on Monday.
The storm was forecast to move westward, passing south of Taiwan toward Hong Kong, which it was expected to reach on Wednesday. Neighboring Guangdong Province in southern China was also bracing for widespread destruction.
Taiwan’s fire agency said it was evacuating about 3,500 people from its east and south. The government closed some national parks and told hikers to leave the area.
Cathay Pacific said that it was canceling more than 500 flights, including all of its arrivals and departures from Hong Kong International Airport from 6 p.m. on Tuesday to 6 a.m. on Thursday, local time. The airport has not announced whether it would close. Hong Kong’s education department said that schools will be shut on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The authorities in Shenzhen, a mainland Chinese city on Hong Kong’s border, said they planned to evacuate 400,000 people living in flood-prone regions and advised residents to stockpile food. Also in southern China, rail operators said that train service in Guangdong would be reduced from Tuesday afternoon and completely suspended by Wednesday.
Aie Balagtas See contributed reporting from Manila.
Tiffany May is a reporter based in Hong Kong, covering the politics, business and culture of the city and the broader region.
Xinyun Wu is a reporter and researcher covering technology and business in China and Taiwan and is based in Taipei, Taiwan.
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