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14 people dead in Taiwan, 129 missing after lake overflows
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Roads, beaches, hotel flooded in Hong Kong
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Hundreds of south China flights cancelled, shelters opened
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Ragasa expected to target China's Guangdong Province next
By Jessie Pang and David Kirton
HONG KONG/SHENZHEN, China, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Typhoon
Ragasa, the world's most powerful tropical cyclone this year,
barreled towards tens of millions of people in southern China on
Wednesday after killing 14 people in Taiwan, leaving scores
missing and lashing Hong Kong with ferocious winds and heavy
rains.
Some 129 people are missing in Taiwan's eastern Hualien
county, after a barrier lake overflowed and sent a wall of water
into a town, the Taiwan fire department said on Wednesday, with
Ragasa's outer rim having drenched the island since Monday.
Many residents in the tourist town of Guangfu complained
there was insufficient warning from Taiwan authorities, who
are used to moving people out of potential danger zones swiftly
on the island which is frequently hit by typhoons.
As rains inundated Taiwan, Hong Kong grappled with huge
waves that crashed over areas of the Asian financial hub's
eastern and southern shoreline, breaking into white-water
streams as they rushed along pavements and submerged some roads
alongside residential properties.
At the Fullerton hotel on the island's south, videos on
social media showed a torrent of seawater surging through its
glass doors before flooding the floor area. Calls to the
property remained unanswered on Wednesday.
China's marine authority issued its highest "red" wave
warning for the first time this year, forecasting storm surges
of up to 2.8 metres (9 feet) in parts of Guangdong province, as
Ragasa charges towards the densely populated Pearl River Delta.
Ragasa formed over the Western Pacific last week. Fuelled by
warm seas and favourable atmospheric conditions, the tropical
cyclone rapidly intensified to become a Category 5 super typhoon
on Monday with winds exceeding 260 kph (162 mph).
It has since weakened to a Category 3 typhoon, which is
still capable of bringing down trees and power lines, shattering
windows and damaging buildings.
"Authorities have taken lessons from Hato and Mangkhut,
which both caused billions of dollars in damage in 2017 and
2018," said Chim Lee, a senior energy and climate change
specialist at the Economist Intelligence Unit.
"The Pearl River Delta is one of the best-prepared regions
for typhoons, so we're not expecting major disruptions. One
change this year is that the Hong Kong stock market has stayed
open during typhoons - a sign of how resilient the
infrastructure has become," he added.
That said, Zijin Gold International delayed its
$3.2 billion IPO in Hong Kong on Wednesday.
CHINA BRACES FOR LANDFALL
After passing around 100 km (60 miles) south of Hong Kong
over the next few hours, Ragasa is expected to make landfall
along the south Chinese coast in the late afternoon.
Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan and Dongguan, the largest cities
in the storm's path, are home to around 50 million people.
The emergency management ministry dispatched tens of
thousands of tents, folding beds, emergency lighting equipment
and other rescue supplies to Guangdong on Tuesday, Chinese state
media reported, while over 770,000 people have been evacuated.
Some shops and restaurants in the province parked large
rented trucks in front of their storefronts in a bid to shield
them from the storm, local media reported.
"We live on an upper floor and saw there wasn't too much
danger, so I brought the kids out to experience this heavy rain
and wind," a 40-year-old Shenzhen resident surnamed Liang said.
"We walked along the open road to make sure to stay safe."
A crowd chasing the storm under Shenzhen Bay Bridge were
moved on by traffic police, a Reuters witness observed.
"The typhoon was really intense, but I've not been out
long," said an electric scooter delivery driver who goes by the
name of Tim and was using his vehicle to move around and assess
the damage.
"It's a lot of fun, but it's also dangerous. I wanted to
ride around the waterfront, but it's too dangerous, so I had to
come back onto the bridge."
China's marine authority warned of a high risk of flooding
in Shenzhen, especially in low-lying areas, with a storm surge
alert expected to remain in effect until Thursday.
A woman and her five-year-old son were swept into the ocean
on Tuesday after watching the typhoon from the Hong Kong
waterfront, according to the South China Morning Post, which
said they were now in intensive care.
Hong Kong lowered its typhoon signal to 8 from 10 just after
1 pm (0500 GMT) on Wednesday, keeping the city locked down.
The hospital authority said at least 50 people had been
injured by the typhoon, while the government had opened 50
temporary shelters, within which 791 sought refuge.
In the gambling hub of Macau next to Hong Kong, casinos were
forced to shutter their gambling areas. Guests are not able to
leave their property if they are staying there. One user on
China's Xiaohongshu app showed videos of doors being sealed at a
casino resort for protection against gales and debris.