Super Typhoon Ragasa Impacts East Asia as Atlantic Storms Brew
Super Typhoon Ragasa brought destructive winds and torrential rainfall to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and southern China this week before weakening as it moved into Vietnam on Thursday night. At its peak,Ragasa sustained winds of 165mph as it passed south of Taiwan,triggering a barrier lake burst and resulting in 17 fatalities.
The storm then tracked westward, impacting Hong Kong with significant rainfall – totaling 197mm across Tuesday and Wednesday – and causing 90 injuries. Ragasa made landfall Wednesday in China’s guangdong province with winds of 150mph, equivalent to a Category 4 hurricane. Millions were evacuated from cities including Shenzhen, Chaozhou, Zhuhai, Dongguan, and Foshan in readiness for the storm’s arrival.
Further south, the Philippines is bracing for another potential disaster as Tropical Storm bualoi develops in the western Pacific.Forecasts predict Bualoi will strengthen into a typhoon on friday, making landfall at the southern end of Luzon, the country’s largest island.authorities have preemptively closed schools and cancelled flights in anticipation of widespread flooding and landslides. This new threat comes just days after Ragasa caused nine deaths in the Philippine archipelago.
Across the globe, the Atlantic hurricane season is gaining momentum. Tropical storm Humberto was named on Thursday and is currently located northeast of the Caribbean. It is expected to rapidly intensify and likely become a hurricane this weekend over the southeastern Atlantic.
Hurricane Gabrielle passed over the Azores on Thursday night, bringing hurricane-force winds, heavy rainfall, and a risky storm surge to the islands. Meteorologists are also monitoring a third system developing just north of the Dominican Republic, which is expected to strengthen in the coming days.
