HONG KONG: Hong Kong issued its third-highest tropical cyclone warning in the early hours of Sunday as Typhoon Wipha drew nearer, with authorities cancelling classes and grounding hundreds of flights.

Wipha was located around 280 kilometres (175 miles) southeast of Hong Kong as of midnight (1600 GMT), according to Hong Kong’s weather observatory.

The observatory has hoisted the T8 warning signal, meaning that “winds with mean speeds of 63 kilometres per hour or more are expected”.

The storm was expected to keep intensifying, moving across the northern part of the South China Sea and edging closer to the coast of China’s Guangdong province.

“There will be frequent heavy squally showers and thunderstorms over the region. Seas will be high with swells,” the observatory added.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2025