Hong Kong hunkered down on Friday morning as Super Typhoon Yagi slowly skirted past the territory, bringing gale-force winds and heavy rain but little apparent damage in the first T8 signal of the year. Day schools and businesses are closed for the morning, with the observatory saying the T8 signal – which was issued at 6.20pm on Thursday evening – will remain in force until noon on Friday at the earliest. The storm maintained a distance of at least 330 kilometres from the territory as it headed towards Hainan Island, bringing storm winds offshore and on high ground. Gusts of almost 150 kilometres per hour were recorded in Ngong Ping during the storm’s passage, while there were sustained winds of up to 116 kph at one point. The observatory twice issued the Amber Rainstorm Warning, authorities did not receive any reports of landslides or flooding. As of 4am, authorities received around three dozen reports of fallen trees, three people sought help at Accident and Emergency Departments of public hospitals, and 260 people sought refuge at 30 temporary shelters opened by the Home Affairs Department. The observatory warned that the intense rainbands associated with Yagi will continue to bring heavy squally showers to the territory and urged people to remain alert. It said seas will be very rough with swells, and members of the public should stay away from the shoreline and not engage in water sports. MTR and Light Rail trains are running at limited intervals, while its bus services remain suspended. It also said air passengers hoping to use in-town check-in services on the Airport Express should get there a full two-hours before their flight’s scheduled departure time, up from 90 minutes.
