HONG KONG – On Sunday, Typhoon Wipha led to significant flight cancellations in Hong Kong and nearby Chinese airports as it progressed westward along the southern coast.
Airports in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Macao either canceled or postponed all daytime flights, according to their websites. Additionally, some high-speed train services in the region were halted.
The Hong Kong Observatory raised a hurricane signal No. 10, the highest alert available. Around midday, the storm’s eye was passing just south of Hong Kong, bringing with it maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers (87 miles) per hour, as reported by the Observatory.
The government said over 200 people had headed to public shelters and that it had received dozens of reports of fallen trees. Hong Kong Disneyland and other amusement parks were closed.
The storm, which reached typhoon strength overnight, was headed toward Macao and the neighboring Chinese city of Zhuhai. It was forecast to make landfall late Sunday and continue moving west, reaching Vietnam later this week.
Wipha, which is a Thai name, passed over the Philippines at tropical storm strength and drenched parts of Taiwan on Saturday. Names for typhoons in the western Pacific are chosen by the countries in the region.
In the Philippines, the storm intensified seasonal monsoon rains, leaving at least one villager dead in floodwaters in northern Cagayan province.
More than 370,000 people were affected by days of stormy weather, including 43,000 who fled to government-run emergency shelters or homes of relatives due to flooding, landslides and fierce wind. More than 400 houses were damaged in the onslaught, officials said.
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