Asia: Super typhoon slams into China after pummelling Philippines

A super typhoon made landfall in China’s Guangdong on Sunday, the country’s most populous province, after wreaking havoc in Hong Kong and Macau and killing potentially more than 50 people in the Philippines. Packing winds of more than 200 kph (125 mph) at its peak, tropical cyclone Mangkhut is considered the strongest to hit the region this year. The eye of Mangkhut, the Thai name for Southeast Asia’s mangosteen fruit, skirted 100 kms (62 miles) south of Hong Kong but the former British colony was still caught in the typhoon’s swirling bands of rain and gale-force winds. Hong Kong raised its highest No. 10 typhoon signal mid-morning as ferocious winds uprooted trees and smashed windows in office and residential buildings, some of which swayed in the gusts, residents said. Flight cancellations at Hong Kong’s international airport, a major regional hub, disrupted the plans of tens of thousands of travellers. Airlines such as flagship carrier Cathay Pacific cancelled many flights last week. China's Shenzhen airport, shut since midnight, will be closed until 8:00 a.m. (2400 GMT) on Monday. Flights have also been cancelled in Guangzhou and the island of Hainan, China’s southernmost province. High winds and swells also hit Fujian province north of Guangdong, shutting ports, suspending ferry services and cancelling more than 100 flights. <br/>