Typhoon Ragasa made landfall on the coast of Hailing Island in Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province, China, at around 17:00 local time on September 24 as a Category-3 storm. At the time of landfall, maximum sustained winds reached 90 mph (144 km/h). Previously, Ragasa made landfall as a super typhoon, the world’s strongest storm this year so far, over Panuitan Island, Cagayan Province, Philippines, at 15:00 local time on September 22, bringing wind gusts of up to 183 mph (295 km/h) to the region. The storm underwent a period of rapid intensification as it tracked east to west across the Philippine Sea, strengthening from a Tropical Storm to a Category-5 Super Typhoon before weakening to Category-3 in the South China Sea prior to making a second landfall along the Chinese coast. The storm’s compact but powerful inner core passed approximately 100 km south of Hong Kong, sparing the city from more severe direct impacts. After its landfall in China, Ragasa continued to weaken and, as of this update, has degraded into a remnant low centered over northern Vietnam.
Authorities in Guangdong Province raised its wind emergency response to the highest level, and more than 2.2 million people were evacuated across the province as of 18:00 local time on September 24. Widespread industrial shutdowns and transportation stoppages were reported in more than a dozen cities across the province, including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Maoming. The strong winds also forced Hong Kong and Macao to issue their highest typhoon warning signal, with businesses, schools, and transportation activities largely halted.
In the Philippines, Ragasa led to severe flooding in parts of Manila, Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, Benguet, and Apayao in Northern Luzon, with more than 25,000 people evacuated. In Taiwan, almost 8,000 people were evacuated across Kaohsiung City and Hualien County, and thousands of customers temporarily lost power across Pingtung, Taitung, and Hualien counties following the storm’s passage.
Regulatory orders suspend production and transportation across southern China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the Philippines
As the typhoon tracked across the South China Sea before making landfall, local authorities in nearby countries announced pre-emptive production and transportation stoppages. The storm prompted industrial and transportation stoppages in more than a dozen cities in Guangdong Province, including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Maoming, Chaozhou, Shantou, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Shanwei, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, Yangjiang, Zhanjiang, Zhaoqing, and Yunfu, until at least September 25. Rail services and trucking routes were also suspended across Guangdong. Authorities closed the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, which has since reopened, and suspended all outbound customs clearance services on September 23. However, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Chaozhou already ended their shutdowns on the evening of September 24 after local authorities downgraded typhoon warning levels.
Guangdong Province is one of China’s main manufacturing hubs, and home to industries including electronics, textile making and machinery, all of which will likely face temporary production impacts due to the storm’s passage. One of the region’s major electronics manufacturers, Foxconn Industrial Internet Co., Ltd., suspended production at all units of its Innovative Product Enclosure Business Group (iPEBG) factory in Shenzhen from the evening of September 23 due to the incoming storm.
In Taiwan, industrial facilities across Taoyuan District in Kaohsiung, Taitung County, Hualien County and Pingtung County, as well as the Orchid, and Green Islands had also been expected to brace for possible disruptions in production from September 22 onwards.
Storm closes ports and airports in southern China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan
Local authorities in southern China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong also halted port and airport operations in anticipation of the typhoon’s arrival. Ragasa affected flight operations at Hong Kong International Airport, Macao International Airport, and Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport, China. Cargo pick-up and delivery operations were also affected at Zhuhai International Airport in China from 12:00 local time on September 23, impacting local logistics carriers including DHL.
Taiwan halted all flight operations to its outlying islands from 12:00 local time on September 22, disrupting operations at airports such as Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. Some aviation disruptions were also felt at other Asian airports not in the storm’s direct path, including Narita International Airport and Haneda International Airport in Japan, Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur International Airport, and Incheon International Airport in South Korea.
Local authorities also suspended terminal operations at the Port of Hong Kong, Port of Kaohsiung in Taiwan, and multiple Chinese ports, with some ports closing entirely in anticipation of Ragasa’s passage. Work stoppages at the Chinese ports of Chiwan, Shekou, Yantian, and Nansha, were implemented on September 22, with some of the shutdowns expected to last up to five days until September 26. Ocean freight delays of three to seven days may be possible in the affected regions, with 30,000 tons of cargo possibly backlogged across China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Everstream clients are receiving more detailed insights and recommendations about this risk.
Don’t miss key supply chain risk updates! Subscribe now to get supply chain news, weather updates, forecasts, and other insights.