Hong Kong authorities activated the territory's most severe tropical cyclone warning as Typhoon Wipha unleashed hurricane-force winds across the financial hub, forcing officials to cancel hundreds of flights and suspend school operations, The Guardian reported.
The powerful storm positioned itself approximately 60 kilometers (37 miles) southeast of Hong Kong as of 10:00 a.m. Sunday, according to the city's meteorological observatory, which documented massive waves crashing against Hong Kong Island's eastern coastline.
Weather officials implemented the T10 hurricane alert – the territory's highest storm warning level – announcing that "winds with mean speeds of 118 kilometers per hour (73 mph) or more are expected" and represent a "considerable threat to Hong Kong," The Guardian reported.
"Under the influence of its eyewall, hurricane force winds are affecting the southern part of the territory," the observatory stated, urging residents to "beware of destructive winds."
Mainland China's Hainan and Guangdong provinces received high alert designations as the storm approached, state news agency Xinhua confirmed.
The weather system, which intensified to typhoon status during overnight hours, tracked toward Macau and the adjacent Chinese municipality of Zhuhai. Meteorologists projected the storm would reach landfall late Sunday before continuing westward toward Vietnam later in the week.
Hong Kong's airport authority revealed that approximately 500 flights faced cancellation due to weather conditions, while another 400 flights received rescheduling for later departure and arrival times on Sunday.
Government-operated temporary shelters accommodated hundreds of residents seeking safety from the storm. Medical officials treated one individual at a public hospital emergency room Sunday morning, while authorities documented more than a dozen fallen tree incidents across the territory.
Education officials suspended Sunday classes at all day schools and daycare facilities throughout Hong Kong.
Local railway systems provided restricted services while completely halting operations in exposed sections of the network.
The typhoon delivered heavy precipitation and flooding conditions to the Philippines, where the national disaster council reported two missing persons in connection with the storm system.
Hong Kong previously activated the T10 warning designation for Super Typhoon Saola in 2023, marking the last time officials employed the territory's highest storm alert level.
