Typhoon Khanun passed into the South China Sea over the weekend, initially on a trajectory headed for the Pearl River Estuary area, before banking West toward Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong province.
As the typhoon edged closer to the MSAR, weather authorities in the city hoisted incrementally higher warning signals. By 10 a.m. yesterday morning, Signal No.8 was in effect and would last until 9 p.m. that same day.
Seven people were reportedly transported to hospital after they were wounded during the extreme weather phenomenon. One of the cases requires hospitalization. According to the Civil Protection Action Center (COPC), a total of 67 incidents had been reported as of 9 p.m. last night. They included two cases of damage to buildings and falling objects, 40 cases of broken or suspended building components (e.g. windows and metal plates), four cases of scaffold suspension, 10 cases of fallen trees and antennas and two cases of obstruction or damage to the sewage system.
More seriously however, there were four reports of flooding in the city, 2 reports of fire and seven wounded people were transported to the hospital for medical treatment.
Reports of flooding in parts of the low- lying areas of Macau were confirmed by the COPC yesterday. The affected areas included Visconde Paço de Arcos Street between Ponte 16 and Auto-Silo Pak Kong as well as the area surrounding the Temple of the Bazaar on Rua Cinco De Outubro.
In a statement released yesterday by the COPC, the entity urged “all residents and tourists to move to safe locations as quickly as possible, avoiding the low-lying areas and those near the sea. […] The population is also asked to be attentive to the information broadcast by radio and television.”
Other activities and services were predictably disrupted yesterday due to Typhoon Khanun. They included civil service examinations, which had been previously postponed after Typhoon Hato breached the city on August 23.
Police authorities were also deployed yesterday to investigate rumors of illegal transportation services being offered to tourists at the Outer Harbor Ferry Terminal.
A total of 108 taxi infractions were recorded, including 80 cases of overcharging, 19 cases of refusing a passenger and nine cases of illegal taxis.
Shortly prior to the hoisting of Signal No.8 yesterday morning, chief executive Chui Sai On convened a meeting at the COPC to be briefed on the response measures to the typhoon. The COPC had been fully activated just two hours before signal number 8 was lifted. DB
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