Super Typhoon Ragasa kills 14 in Taiwan, heads towards China

New Delhi, Sep 24: At least 14 people have died in Taiwan after Super Typhoon Ragasa caused a barrier lake in Hualien County to overflow, flooding the town of Guangfu, international media reported. Officials say it is the strongest storm of the year.

The storm has already battered the northern Philippines and is now moving towards southern China. It is expected to hit Guangdong province of China on Wednesday, where more than 370,000 people have already been evacuated.

In Guangdong’s Zhuhai city, people have taped up windows and secured their homes ahead of landfall. Across the region, schools have been suspended as China braces for the typhoon.

In Hong Kong, authorities have raised the storm warning to level 10, their highest alert. Schools and businesses have closed, supermarket shelves are empty, and hundreds of flights have been cancelled. Residents have been urged to stay indoors, away from windows and doors, until the storm passes.

The Hong Kong Observatory reported wind gusts of up to 206 km/h at Ngong Ping plateau and warned of storm surges up to 5 metres in some coastal areas.