Typhoon Talim Forces Flight Cancellations, 260,000 Evacuations in China; Makes Landfall in Vietnam – News18
Schools and the stock market were closed in Hong Kong on Monday as Typhoon Talim swept south of the city. (Image: AP Photo)
Hong Kong experiences severe typhoons leading to school and stock market closures and China saw over 260,000 evacuations.
Typhoon Talim reached Vietnam on Tuesday after passing through China and weakened to a tropical storm. However, it managed to displace over 260,000 people as they were relocated before the storm hit.
The typhoon first made landfall in southern China’s Guangdong province late Monday evening, battering the coastal areas and led to strong winds reaching up to 136.8 kilometres per hour.
The Typhoon Talim was Hong Kong’s first typhoon of the year. “[It] is expected to develop into a tropical cyclone. It may enter the northern part of the South China Sea early next week and bring unsettled weather to the region,” the Hong Kong Observatory said, according to the South China Morning Post.
The Chinese Meteorological Association said that Talim was the fourth typhoon of this year and authorities on Monday ordered the closure of dozens of coastal tourist destinations and kept 11 rescue vessels, five helicopters, 46 salvage ships and eight emergency rescue teams on standby to respond to the storm.
Talim, which means “sharp” in Tagalog, brought most of Hong Kong and eastern and southeastern China to a standstill this weekend.
The storms were so severe that pedestrians were falling over and struggling against the winds. A whale washed ashore and a freezer full of ice cream floated off in floods, according to a separate report by Reuters.
Early Tuesday morning Talim made a second landfall and moved into southern Guangxi region.
At least 35 passenger train services have been disrupted and 26 flights were cancelled in Guangxi’s Nanning city.
Railway services were gradually being restored on Tuesday morning after being suspended the previous day in Hainan.
China, like Japan, South Korea and India, is facing an intense monsoon season. It earlier this year, like India, faced a severe heat wave as well.
Scientists believe that human-induced global warming is exacerbating climate change leading to extreme weather events. Unprecedented heat waves have led to concerns regarding health and well-being in Europe and the US and in Asia, over 100 people have died due to extreme weather events raising questions regarding the future of the planet.
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