Hong Kong – Deadly Super Typhoon Yagi makes landfall China On Friday, what officials said could be the strongest storm to hit the country’s southern coast in a decade brought much of life to a standstill in the region.
Yagi is Asia’s largest storm so far this year and the world’s second most powerful tropical cyclone since 2024. Hurricane Berylwhich affected the US Gulf Coast and parts of Mexico and the Caribbean in June and July. A super typhoon is equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane.
in Advisory on ThursdayThe Indo-Pacific Tropical Cyclone Warning Center said Yagi was an “extremely dangerous and powerful super typhoon” that could make a “potentially catastrophic landfall” in China. Hainan Island Province.
The typhoon has more than doubled in strength since earlier this week, when 16 people were killed in its passage. Philippines. Maximum sustained winds near its center on Friday were 150 mph.
Yagi made landfall in the Henan city of Wenchang. State media reported that 410,000 people had been evacuated to the island, a popular tourist destination.
China’s Ministry of Natural Resources said Yagi could be the strongest typhoon to hit China’s southern coast since Typhoon Rammonsoon in 2014, which killed 88 people in four provinces.
It is rare for super typhoons to make landfall in Hainan, with only nine of 106 typhoons hitting the island from 1949 to 2023, according to Reuters.
After hitting Hainan, the storm is expected to weaken and move laterally Vietnam and Laos at the weekend.
Some parts of the region experienced thunderstorms and lightning along with strong winds and heavy rain overnight and into Friday morning.
in the Chinese territory of Hong KongThe stock exchange and schools were closed on Friday after the city of 7.5 million issued its typhoon warning on Thursday evening. Businesses began to reopen around midday on Friday after the typhoon warning was downgraded.
Hong Kong officials said nine people were injured and more than 100 trees were reported down. The city’s airport authority said 80% of flights scheduled for Friday would take off on time.
Traffic was disrupted across southern China on Friday amid the storm. The world’s longest sea crossing, a bridge that connects Hong Kong to the Chinese territory of Macau and the Chinese city of Zhuhai in Guangdong, was also closed.
Scientists say typhoons and hurricanes are becoming stronger and more frequent as oceans warm. Last week, Japan experienced its strongest typhoon in decades when it hit Typhoon ShanshanAt least seven people were killed and extensive damage was caused.
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