Super Typhoon Ragasa: Death toll climbs to 14 in Taiwan after flood, Hong Kong hit with hurricane-winds

Fourteen people are dead in eastern Taiwan’s Hualien county after a barrier lake in the mountains overflowed and sent a wall of water into a town during a typhoon.

On Tuesday night the Government put the death toll from Super Typhoon Ragasa at two with 30 others missing and a fire department official said further details would be provided later on Wednesday.

The barrier lake, formed by landslides triggered by earlier heavy rain in the sparsely populated east of Taiwan, burst its banks mid-afternoon on Tuesday, sending a wall of water into Guangfu township.

The government estimated the barrier lake contained 91 million tonnes of water, enough to fill some 36,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools and the equivalent of a major reservoir in southern Taiwan.

When the lake overflowed, around 60 million tonnes of water was released, the government said.

Taiwan has been lashed by the outer rim of Super Typhoon Ragasa, which is now on its way to the southern Chinese coast and financial hub of Hong Kong.

Taiwan logged around 70cm rainfall in its east due to the typhoon.

Ragasa, the world’s most powerful tropical cyclone this year, is now lashing Hong Kong with hurricane-force winds and torrential rain as the city shuts down and more than 700 flights cancelled.

It is expected to maintain super typhoon intensity as it edges closer to the coast of China’s Guangdong province, home to more than 125 million people, where it is expected to make landfall from midday to late Wednesday.

Smart Traveller is warning Australians to “exercise a high degree of caution in China overall”.

“If you’re in affected areas, monitor local media and follow the advice of local authorities. Travel disruptions may occur, including flight cancellations and some border crossing closures,” the Australian Government website reads.

“Check with your travel provider for updates to your travel plans.

“Australians may be at risk of arbitrary detention, exit bans or harsh enforcement of local laws, including broadly defined National Security Laws.”

Ragasa swept through the northern Philippines on Monday and Taiwan on Tuesday.

The typhoon sparked panic buying this week, with people piling into Hong Kong supermarkets, leaving little on the shelves and in some cases queuing for hours to purchase goods amid fears that shops could be closed for two days.

As the typhoon approached, residents across the city taped their windows in the hope of minimising any danger from shattered glass.Packing hurricane-force winds of up to 200km/h, Ragasa will be closest to Hong Kong early on Wednesday morning, skirting around 100km to the south of the territory.

Hong Kong issued the typhoon signal 10, its highest, late on Tuesday, which urges most businesses and transport services to shut down.

“Seas will be phenomenal with swells. There will be overtopping waves over the shoreline, which will be particularly significant along the eastern and southern coasts,” the observatory said.

Authorities have warned of rising sea levels, saying they could be similar to those seen during Typhoon Hato in 2017 and Typhoon Mangkhut in 2018, both of which caused billions of dollars in damage.

The observatory said water levels have started to rise due to a significant storm surge and will reach a maximum of around four metres around noon (2pm AEST).

The financial hub has already opened 49 temporary shelters in various districts and 727 people have sought refuge at the shelters.

Hong Kong’s Stock Exchange will remain open. It changed its policy late last year to continue trading whatever the weather.

Ragasa will maintain super typhoon intensity as it edges closer to the coast of Guangdong, mainland China and Taiwan, after sweeping through the northern Philippines on Monday.

It is expected to make landfall along Guangdong’s coast from midday to late on Wednesday.

Guangdong authorities evacuated over 770,000 people, state broadcaster CCTV said.

In the gambling hub of Macau next to Hong Kong, authorities issued the No. 10 warning signal.