Typhoon Wipha topples trees and causes major flight disruptions in Hong Kong and southern China

HONG KONG (AP) – Typhoon Wipha toppled trees and caused major flight disruptions Sunday in Hong Kong and at some nearby airports in China as it moved west off the country’s southern coast.

Airports in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Macao canceled or postponed daytime flights, their websites showed. Hong Kong grounded about 400 flights, affecting some 80,000 passengers, broadcaster RTHK said. Some high-speed train services were also suspended.

The Hong Kong Observatory issued a hurricane signal No. 10, its highest warning. The eye of the storm passed just south of the city around midday with maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers (87 miles) per hour, the observatory said.

Vehicles weaved around branches strewn on the streets. The government said it had received more than 350 reports of fallen trees and that 21 people had sought medical treatment at public hospitals. A news release did not provide details on any injuries.

About 240 people had sought refuge in public shelters, the release said. Hong Kong Disneyland and other amusement parks were closed.

The storm, which reached typhoon strength overnight, later passed off Macao and was forecast to make landfall on China’s coast late Sunday. It is expected to reach Vietnam later this week.

Wipha, which is a Thai name, passed over the Philippines at tropical storm strength and drenched parts of Taiwan on Saturday. Names for typhoons in the western Pacific are chosen by the countries in the region.

In the Philippines, the storm intensified seasonal monsoon rains, leaving at least one villager dead in floodwaters in northern Cagayan province.

More than 370,000 people were affected by days of stormy weather, including 43,000 who fled to government-run emergency shelters or homes of relatives due to flooding, landslides and fierce winds. More than 400 houses were damaged, officials said.

Elsewhere in Asia, heavy rains in South Korea left 14 people dead and 12 others missing, the government said Sunday.