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Emily Hung

Super Typhoon Ragasa wreaked havoc across Hong Kong on Wednesday, with strong waves shattering the glass doors of an Ocean Park hotel and violent winds blowing a barge ashore and tearing air-conditioning units from homes.
Dubbed the “king of storms” by mainland Chinese weather authorities, Ragasa maintained winds of 220km/h (137mph) near its centre when the No 8 warning signal was issued on Tuesday afternoon.
The signal was raised to No 9 and then to No 10 early on Wednesday, when it was closest to Hong Kong at a distance of about 120km (74.5 miles) south of the city.
After remaining in force for nearly 11 hours, the weather forecaster downgraded the No 10 warning signal to No 8 at 1.20pm on Wednesday. The No 8 signal was downgraded to No 3 at 8.20pm.
Online videos showed waves crashing through the glass doors of the Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel in Aberdeen, sweeping staff off their feet and flooding the lobby.
A Post reporter later saw hotel staff clearing debris, mopping up water and sweeping tree branches back outside.
The hotel said no injuries were reported and services were unaffected, adding that guests could continue to check in.


Daryl Ng Win-kong, chairman of Sino Group, which runs the hotel, inspected the clean-up work.
“My hotel colleagues working overnight through the typhoon are my true unsung heroes. We will rebuild and come back stronger,” he said.
At Heng Fa Chuen, a private housing estate along the eastern coast, some residents saw their air-conditioning units rattled loose by winds and left hanging dangerously outside their windows.
A Post reporter found the debris of an air-conditioning unit lying on the ground outside a building.
“The air-con unit outside [my window] made loud noises at night. I thought it was the wind until I saw it [dislodged] at 7am. I was very scared and worried it would fall and hit someone,” said resident Dennis Yim, 44, who has lived in the estate for three years.
“The wind was too strong … the property manager told me that I was not the only case in the estate.”
He added that firefighters came two hours later and removed the unit.
Strong winds also uprooted a few trees and blew down lamp posts at the estate.

Authorities received reports of nearly 900 fallen trees across the city, 19 flooding cases and four landslides.
Across the harbour in Hung Hom, waves drove a barge into an embankment near Laguna Verde, washing it up onto a paved pedestrian walkway and scattering debris.
The vessel was later towed away by three tugboats arranged by the Marine Department and the owner.
About a 10-minute walk away from the scene, dozens of paving bricks were washed loose by the floodwater outside Hung Hom Ferry Pier.
At Ho Man Tin’s Oi Man Estate, a gigantic decades-old banyan tree fell under the strong winds, with its immense root ball exposed.
Many residents expressed regret on social media, saying the banyan, which was about the height of an eight-storey building, was part of their collective memory.


Also in Ho Man Tin, scaffolding measuring 20 metres by 30 metres on Waterloo Road came loose early on Wednesday and led to the temporary closure of six lanes. Staff from the Buildings Department were deployed to inspect it.
Two National Day decorations at least 10 metres long and installed on road barriers – one on Argyle Street in Ho Man Tin and one on Cheung Sha Wan Road – collapsed under the wind.
In Sham Shui Po, a shipping container office was left standing in the middle of Sham Mong Road after strong winds blew it from a nearby construction site, along with some toppled water safety barriers.
The roof of a pedestrian bridge at the intersection of Lung Cheung Road and Hammer Hill Road near Diamond Hill was also blown away, with the structure landing on a nearby highway, according to an online video.
On the western coast of the New Territories, the strong wind tore off tiles from the exterior wall of a block in Bellagio, a private residential estate in Sham Tseng.
Several square metres of tiles were blown off, and the area was cordoned off by management, which said repairs would begin once the weather stabilised.

Elsewhere, the winds appeared to have blown away the roof of a movable prefabricated unit atop a village house, said to be in Pak Sha Wan in Sai Kung, according to a video circulating online. The video showed a destroyed room, with debris and soaked belongings scattered everywhere.
In Tseung Kwan O, overtopping waves reached up to two-thirds of the height of the Cross Bay Link, inundating the promenade and sweeping into a few restaurants along the shore.
Surveillance camera footage circulating online showed strong waves breaking the glass doors of a restaurant at Monterey Place and turning the store upside down, with all the furniture damaged and overturned.
Waves also hurled patio furniture against a Belgian restaurant next door, shattering the glass doors and breaking doorframes, leaving a mountain of debris blocking the entrance.


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Hong Kong weather

Ragasa lashes Hong Kong: Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel breached by waves, barge grounded

A barge is washed aground at Hung Hom promenade, damaging the embankment near Laguna Verde. Photo: Nora Tam

Staff mop up water in the lobby of Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel, which was breached by crashing waves. Photo: Jelly Tse

The remains of a dislodged air-conditioning unit on the ground outside a residential building in Heng Fa Chuen. Photo: Karma Lo

Super Typhoon Ragasa brings Hong Kong to a standstill – as it happened

The Airport Authority says flights will resume after midnight. Photo: Sun Yeung

Hong Kong to fall in ‘dangerous semicircle’ of ‘king of storms’ Ragasa: experts

Hong Kong police evacuate a young resident from Lei Yue Mun in the wake of serious flooding caused by Super Typhoon Mangkhut in 2018. Photo: Winson Wong

Damage in Tseung Kwan O Waterfront Park caused by Super Typhoon Mangkhut in September 2018. Photo: Sam Tsang

News

Hong Kong

Health & Environment

No 10 signal in force for nearly 11 hours, with fierce winds and waves causing widespread damage


No 10 signal in force for nearly 11 hours, with fierce winds and waves causing widespread damage.


Super Typhoon Ragasa

China

Fullerton Hotel Ocean Park

Ragasa lashes Hong Kong: Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel breached by waves, barge grounded

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}No 10 signal in force for nearly 11 hours, with fierce winds and waves causing widespread damage

No 10 signal in force for nearly 11 hours, with fierce winds and waves causing widespread damage