Hong Kong, southern China hit by powerful Typhoon Ragasa after it batters the Philippines

By Helen Regan, Taylor Ward, CNN

(CNN) — A huge and deadly typhoon is battering Hong Kong and southern China after lashing the Philippines and Taiwan with destructive winds and torrential rain, putting the region’s megacities on high alert with canceled flights and disruption to schools and businesses.

Tens of millions of people could be impacted by Typhoon Ragasa, which is expected to pass south of major cities Hong Kong, Macau, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, before making landfall again in the west of mainland China’s Guangdong province.

At least 14 people were killed in Taiwan when a barrier lake breached in the eastern county of Hualien, the county’s fire department said on Wednesday morning.

The breach caused widespread flooding in Hualien, and video showed a large bridge collapsing.

Authorities in Hong Kong have already reported at least six injuries, a landslide and multiple fallen trees.

Ragasa was nearing its closest pass to the city early Wednesday morning local time, with sustained winds reaching typhoon strength, 118 kilometers per hour (73 miles per hour), in several locations. The winds prompted Hong Kong and Macau to issue a T10 – their highest typhoon warning signal.

The greatest storm surges and sea-level rises in Hong Kong are expected later Wednesday morning and into the early afternoon, after the center of the storm makes its closest approach, according to the Observatory.

The storm will continue to move west, passing roughly 100 km (65 miles) south of Hong Kong over the next few hours. It is then expected to move west-northwest and make landfall in western portions of Guangdong Wednesday afternoon local time.

Ragasa hit the northern Philippines as the strongest storm on Earth so far this year, after generating sustained winds of over 267 kph (165 mph), the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane.

The sheer size of the system churning its way through the South China Sea was captured from space by Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui aboard the International Space Station.

Ragasa, known in the Philippines as Nando, made landfall as a super typhoon over Panuitan island, in the northern Cagayan province, on Monday, damaging homes, cutting off roads, and triggering landslides.

It has since weakened slightly and is no longer a super typhoon, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. However, the storm remains a powerful typhoon. At its center, it has sustained winds of 215 kph (135 mph), making it equivalent to a Category 4 hurricane.

Authorities in China have activated emergency responses. Entire megacities in Guangdong, one of the world’s most populous regions, have been brought to a standstill ahead of the storm, with schools closed and work suspended, some businesses shut, and public transport halted.

Guangzhou, a city of 18.6 million people, issued its highest red alert late Tuesday. In Shenzhen, home to about 17.5 million residents, work and businesses were shut down and officials were preparing to relocate 400,000 people from low-lying and coastal areas.

The Hong Kong Observatory warned of the risk of “phenomenal” ocean swells and storm surges of up to 4 meters in some areas on Wednesday.

Supermarket shelves were emptied in Hong Kong as residents stockpiled supplies in preparation, and video showed similar scenes in the southern Chinese cities of Zhuhai and Shenzhen.

Hundreds of flights have been disrupted across the region, with cancellations in Taiwan, Hong Kong and southern China. Hong Kong-based airline Cathay Pacific said it would stop passenger flights scheduled to leave and arrive in the city on Tuesday evening until Thursday morning. Hong Kong Airlines, another regional carrier, also suspended dozens of flights for the week.

Local authorities in Hong Kong said three people were rescued from the sea after a five-year-old boy and a woman were swept away by waves next to a harbor in Chai Wan, an eastern district of Hong Kong island, on Tuesday afternoon.

The boy’s father jumped into the water to try and save them, authorities said. The woman and the boy were rescued by a passing sailor, while police and firefighters were able to save the man, they added. All three are being treated in hospital.

A mega bridge linking Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai will also be closed from Tuesday.

Landslides, flooding in Philippines

The extent of the damage in the Babuyan Islands is not yet clear. The Philippines meteorological agency (PAGASA) had warned of “life-threatening” conditions on the islands as Ragasa’s dangerous winds triggered flooding and landslides.

Images from hard-hit Calayan Island in Cagayan, posted by the state-run Philippines Information Agency (PIA), showed roofs ripped from homes, damaged houses, fallen trees and boats washed ashore.

Search and rescue teams recovered three bodies after a large wave overturned a fishing boat that was sheltering in a Cagayan port, PIA reported Tuesday.

Of the 13 people who were on board, six have been rescued and four are still missing, according to PIA.

Cagayan resident Orlando Bartolome Labio told CNN that agricultural workers were especially impacted by the destruction. “Among the most affected are the farmers, including my parents. It’s a very sad event,” he said.

A landslide in Benguet, on Luzon island, killed one person and injured several others, according to the Tuba Public Information Office. Video posted by the Philippines Coast Guard in northern Luzon’s Ilocos Norte shows teams rescuing families from the heavy winds and torrential rain, and excavators clearing debris from mud-caked roads.

More than 24,000 people were evacuated across northern and central Luzon ahead of the storm, the National Disaster Risk Reduction Council said in a statement Tuesday.

Video from Camiguin Island, posted by the Philippines Department of the Interior and Local Government, showed fierce winds and ocean water whipping past houses onto a residential street. Further north, footage filmed by a resident showed ferocious gusts of wind pelting tall trees in the Batanes province.

Heavy rain advisories remain in place for much of the northern Philippines as Ragasa’s outer bands continue to lash the country, with further risks of flooding and landslides possible in Luzon.

Ragasa is expected to continue a slow weakening trend as it moves closer to Hong Kong and southern China Tuesday and Wednesday, likely as the equivalent of a Category 3 hurricane with winds near 115 mph (185 kph), according to the JTWC.

In addition to the storm’s destructive winds and storm surge, heavy rainfall in excess of 200 mm (8 inches) will bring the potential for flooding across the region.

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CNN’s Briana Waxman, Nectar Gan, Fred He, Chris Lau, Michael Rios, Bex Wright, Ally Barnard, Vina Salazar, Wayne Chang, Samra Zulfaqar and Catherine Nicholls contributed reporting.