Typhoon Ragasa has made landfall in southern China, after at least 17 people were killed by the storm in Taiwan.
Ragasa is the strongest storm of 2025 to date, though it was downgraded from a super typhoon after reaching mainland China. At least 2.16 million people have been evacuated in China’s Guangdong province.
Taiwanese Premier Cho Jung-Tai has called for an inquiry into evacuation processes. Ragasa caused a barrier lake to burst its banks, leading to at least 17 casualties, with 17 others missing.
“We must investigate why evacuation orders were not carried out in the areas we had asked for, which led to such a tragedy,” said Cho. “This is not about assigning blame, but about uncovering the truth.”
The typhoon also triggered Hong Kong’s highest storm alerts, with hundreds of flights cancelled at the city’s international airport. Bridges and ferries connecting Hong Kong to mainland China were closed and will resume limited operations on Thursday.
It made landfall near the Guangdong city of Yangjiang at around 5 pm local time (7 pm AEST). Yangjiang and other nearby coastal cities reported major power outages, with state media reporting that around 60% of those affected had their power restored overnight.
Ragasa is nearing the southern Chinese city of Qinzhou, as of 7 am local time (9 am AEST), after crossing into Guangxi Province. Parts of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Jiangsu will experience rain of up to 220 millimetres until Thursday night, according to the country’s National Meteorological Centre.
The typhoon is expected to continue inland, eventually reaching northern Vietnam and Laos. It is also set to weaken to a tropical depression in the coming days.
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