Typhoon Noul batters southern China after landfall, over 340,000 evacuated in Guangdong

Typhoon Noul made landfall in southern China’s Guangdong province early Sunday, unleashing powerful winds and torrential rain that forced the evacuation of more than 340,000 people, disrupted transport, and led to widespread flight cancellations across the region, including Hong Kong.

According to China’s National Meteorological Center, Noul came ashore near Huidong county in Huizhou at around 3:50 a.m. local time with maximum sustained winds of 145 kmph (90 mph). The storm has since weakened as it moved inland but continues to bring gale-force winds and heavy rainfall.

Hong Kong remained on high alert, with more than 150 flights canceled over the weekend. Authorities reported over 100 incidents of fallen trees and confirmed that nine people were injured. The Hong Kong Observatory warned that strong winds were still affecting many parts of the city despite the typhoon gradually weakening.

Train services across Guangdong were suspended on Sunday, while emergency authorities raised the province’s disaster relief response to its third-highest level.

Forecasters warned that Noul’s rainbands would continue affecting Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, and Hubei, with heavy rainfall expected to extend as far north as Henan and Shandong through Tuesday.

In Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration said the storm brought rain to parts of the island’s south and east before moving away over waters south of Taiwan.

Noul is the latest in a series of powerful storms to strike China this month. Earlier, Typhoon Bavi prompted the evacuation of more than two million people after making landfall on July 11, while Typhoon Maysak hit southern China on July 3.