Typhoon Imbudo batters China, Philippines
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- D.Relief.org
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One of the most powerful typhoons in years
ripped into southern China Thursday (July 24) after claiming 21 lives in
the Philippines and injuring hundreds across its path.
Winds of up to 115 mph pounded the southern
Chinese province of Guangdong as Typhoon Imbudo made landfall near the
city of Yangjiang, about 190 miles southwest of Hong Kong and home to 2.4
million people.
Thousands of residents were evacuated and water and electric supplies were cut as the typhoon made landfall. Winds in the eye of the storm were force 12, the strongest under China's weather system, weather officials said. The storm is reportedly continuing its northwestward trek at 15 mph.
Imbudo is one of the most destructive storms seen in the region for several years and battered Hong Kong with gale force winds and torrential rains Wednesday.
Hong Kong, however, escaped relatively unscathed despite being buffeted by gusts of up to 62 mph. Only 11 injuries were reported, mostly to due flying debris, while rescue helicopters braved strong winds and high seas to pluck 16 sailors from a container ship with a broken rudder.
The Philippines bore the brunt of the storm, with officials describing it as the strongest typhoon to hit the archipelago in five years. The majority of the 21 victims were swept away by flash floods or crushed by landslides and fallen trees.
The Philippines bore the brunt of the storm, with officials describing it as the strongest typhoon to hit the archipelago in five years. The majority of the 21 victims there were swept away by flash floods or crushed by landslides and fallen trees. High winds and rough seas whipped up by Imbudo were felt off the Vietnam coast, where 13 Indonesian sailors, including a woman, were rescued after their ship sank. Forecasters are predicting continued storm winds above 60 mph to strike Halong Bay, a key tourist spot in Vietnam, by July 25.
A hailstorm also clattered through the southern China cities of Linjiang and Luoding, killing two, even before Imbudo hit.
The Hong Kong Observatory said Typhoon Imbudo was the strongest typhoon to hit Guangdong since Typhoon Sally devastated the province in 1996, killing 123 people and injuring 4,300. Six or seven typhoons pass near Hong Kong each year, but direct hits are rare.