The great storm of 1906
At 8.30am on September 18, 1906, the typhoon gun's dreaded signal boomed over the harbour. The warning came too late.
Within minutes, furious cyclonic gales were battering the city. In three hours Hong Kong was devastated. At first, it was feared 1,300 people had died, mostly fisherfolk and maritime workers who lived on sampans. Then the full horror sank in. The death toll rose to 10,000; later, it was accepted 30,000 people had died in the storm with no name.
The Post's coverage the next day included the headlines: 'Terrible loss of life. Steamers beached and sunk. Hundreds of sampans and junks lost. Immense destruction.'
The paper was also highly critical of the Royal Observatory, noting the forecast for the fateful morning was for variable, moderate winds. 'Shrieking laughter at observatory notices, the typhoon swooped upon us,' the report continued.
'A Chinese was blown down Peddar [sic] Street and into the harbour. H. S. Bevan of Lane, Crawford and Co clung to a lamppost while he struggled out of his jacket, then jumped into the water to save the drowning man. They were helped ashore by an Indian constable who unwrapped his turban and used it as a lifeline.'
The winds were so monstrous and the warning so tardy that police, fire, marine and other agencies were unprepared.