SMG announces possibility of T9 as Koinu regains intensity

Travelers wait at the departures hall at Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong, today

The weather bureau has issued a warning that there is a medium possibility of hoisting Typhoon Signal No. 9, as Typhoon Koinu is slowly advancing and approaching the SAR.

The Hong Kong observatory issued Typhoon Signal No. 9 at 7 p.m. as the stronger-than-expected typhoon regained intensity just before passing near the city.

In its latest statement, the Meteorological and Geophysics Bureau (SMG) said, “As Typhoon Koinu may take a more northerly path, the possibility of issuing a higher tropical cyclone signal and yellow storm surge warning cannot be ruled out.”

Scores of flights in Hong Kong and Macau were canceled today the typhoon neared the southern Chinese city after leaving one dead and over 300 injured in Taiwan.

The storm is forecast to move across the coastal waters of neighboring Guangdong province today and tomorrow.

Both the SARs raised its No. 8 storm signal, effectively shutting the city down with shops and schools closing and reducing frequencies of public transport.

Scores of flights to and from Hong Kong were canceled and the main Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge closed temporarily, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Koinu had earlier battered Taiwan with heavy winds and strong rain but later the typhoon had weakened into a tropical storm on its way to southern China.

It comes a month after southern China, Hong Kong and Macau were lashed by Typhoon Saola, which triggered Hong Kong’s highest storm signal on a scale of 11. A week later, Guangdong province and Hong Kong were hit with the heaviest torrential rains in almost 140 years. LV/AP