HONG KONG (AP) — Schools and the stock market were closed in Hong Kong on Monday as Typhoon Talim sideswiped the city and headed toward the Chinese mainland and the island province of Hainan.
Safety alerts were issued for residents and tourists who flock to the region’s beaches during the summer, urging them to stay in safe places away from possible floods or landslides.
State broadcaster CCTV showed typhoon-swept winds and waves hitting an oil platform about 200 kilometers (125 miles) offshore. More than 9,800 workers have been evacuated from such facilities as of noon on Monday, CCTV said.
In Macao, across the Pearl River estuary from Hong Kong, schools suspended classes and public transport was shut down, CCTV said.
In a sign of the typhoon's power and range, residents outside the city of Fuzhou in Fujian province to the north were trapped in high waters as heavy rain fell, CCTV reported. About 1,000 villagers were affected and more than 50 needed to be evacuated, it said.
As Hong Kong, a key center for regional business and travel, braced for rainy and windy weather, more than 100 people sought refuge at temporary shelters. Some government and ferry services were halted and various events were postponed. The city's airport authority said 16 flights were canceled.
The Hong Kong Observatory raised a No. 8 typhoon signal, the third-highest warning under the city’s weather system, early Monday. It was the first warning of its kind issued this year.
As Talim — with maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers (87 miles) per hour — gradually moved away from Hong Kong in the afternoon, the observatory downgraded its warning for the city.
China's National Meteorological Administration forecast the typhoon would make landfall in neighboring Guangdong province and Hainan province on Monday night before entering the Gulf of Tonkin and striking land again in the Guangxi region on Tuesday. Talim is expected to weaken on Wednesday in Vietnam, it said.
In Hong Kong, the government received 32 reports of fallen trees and two reports of floods. Residents were urged to stay away from the shoreline, the observatory said.
While typhoons are an annual occurrence in East Asia, this year has seen record-breaking stretches of high heat across large parts of China, South Korea and Japan. Heat stroke has led to hospitalizations and deaths, while intermittent heat and flooding have caused scores of casualties.
The meteorological administration reported that temperatures in the oasis city of Turpan in the largely arid northwestern Xinjiang region hit a record 52.2 Celsius (125.9 Fahrenheit) on Sunday. Schools and offices were closed and transport and agriculture, particularly the region’s famed vineyards, were affected, the agency said.
Kanis Leung, The Associated Press
