The devastation caused by super typhoon Yagi in China is "beyond imagination"

Super Typhoon Yagi killed four people, injured 95 and affected more than 526,100 people in 19 cities and districts of Hainan province, southern China.

On September 7, local authorities said that this was the strongest typhoon in history to hit China this autumn. According to Weather.com.cn, Yagi is the fourth strongest typhoon to hit China since 1949.

"The devastation and impact of the super typhoon are beyond imagination, extremely catastrophic, causing huge losses of life and property," the Global Times quoted Pan Shaoli, director of the Hainan Provincial Emergency Response Department, as saying.

Typhoon Yagi made landfall in the coastal area of ​​Wenchang City, Hainan Province, on the afternoon of September 6, and its impact gradually eased in the early morning of September 7. Wenchang City was the most severely affected, while Haikou City and other areas were also significantly affected. A total of 312,600 people in the province were evacuated.

Meanwhile, in Guangdong province, Typhoon Yagi made landfall on the night of September 6 with maximum sustained wind speeds of 58 meters per second near the center of the storm, classified as a super typhoon, according to China Central Television (CCTV). A total of 720,000 people were evacuated to avoid the storm.

China's National Meteorological Center (NMC) forecasts that heavy rain will continue to hit the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Yunnan Province until September 9.

After passing through China, Yagi made landfall in Vietnam on the afternoon of September 7, affecting many provinces and cities such as Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Thai Binh, Hai Duong, and Hanoi, causing many human and property losses.

Scientists say ocean warming from the man-made climate crisis is causing storms to intensify faster. Yagi was a tropical storm on September 5 with maximum sustained winds of 90 km/h, but it quickly gathered strength over the warm waters of the South China Sea. When it made landfall in China’s Hainan, Yagi was classified as a super typhoon.

Known as Enteng in the Philippines, Yagi dumped heavy rains on the country, killing at least 13 people. Some areas of Luzon island saw rainfall reaching 400mm.

Typhoon Yagi brought winds of up to 150 km/h when it made landfall in Haikou, northern Hainan province. The storm forced Hainan province, home to 10 million people, to close schools, businesses, restaurants, and beaches. Public transportation, including trains and planes, was suspended. Several cities in neighboring Guangdong and Guangxi provinces took similar measures.

Hainan is known as the “Hawaii of China” for its sandy beaches, five-star resorts, and luxury duty-free shopping. Yagi was the strongest typhoon to hit Hainan since Rammasun in 2014. Rammasun, with winds of over 240 km/h, killed at least 62 people in Hainan, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan, and caused direct economic losses of more than 38 billion yuan ($5.3 billion).

Much of southern China has been hit by weeks of heavy rain this year. Floods and landslides have killed people, disrupted highways, destroyed homes, and caused huge financial losses by wiping out crops and livestock.