Typhoon Yagi hit Hainan Island in southern China on Friday, packing winds of more than 230 kilometers per hour, in what is expected to be the strongest storm to hit the region in more than a decade.
Hainan province evacuated more than 400,000 people ahead of the storm’s expected landfall, while tens of thousands of residents prepared to flee to safety in neighboring Vietnam.
Typhoon Yagi killed at least 13 people in the Philippines this week when it was still classified as a tropical storm, causing flooding and landslides on the main island of Luzon before strengthening into a major typhoon in recent days.
Typhoon Yagi made landfall in China on Friday along the coast of Hainan, a major holiday destination, and neighboring Guangdong province at 16:20 local time, Xinhua news agency reported, citing authorities.
NASA’s Earth Data reported that Yagi is “equivalent to a Category 4 hurricane.”
In Hong Kong, a typhoon warning was lowered shortly after noon following heavy rain overnight as Yagi passed within 400 kilometres of the city.
Trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was suspended today, and morning schools were closed.
Authorities said five people were injured in the city due to the weather conditions but the damage remained limited.
Southern China typically experiences typhoons during the summer and fall, forming in warm oceans east of the Philippines before heading west.
Typhoon Yagi is heading towards Vietnam after passing through southern China, and is expected to hit the northern and north-central regions around the Halong Bay area, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, on Saturday.
According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Defense, more than 457,000 soldiers, police and other forces have been put on alert.
Authorities announced plans to close four airports in the north, including Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport, for several hours on Saturday, while all coastal cities and provinces banned sailing from Friday.
Residents of the northern port of Hai Phong and the capital Hanoi are stocking up on food and other essentials.
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