Typhoon Ragasa nears Hong Kong

Hong Kong and parts of southern China ground to a halt yesterday evening as Super Typhoon Ragasa approached with high winds and lashing rain, forcing Chinese authorities to shut down schools and businesses in at least 10 cities.

Ragasa had already toppled trees, torn the roofs off buildings and killed at least two people while ripping through the northern Philippines, where thousands sought shelter in schools and evacuation centres. The typhoon has also killed two people in Taiwan.

The super typhoon was generating maximum sustained winds of 205 kilometres (127 miles) per hour near its centre while moving west across the South China Sea, according to Hong Kong's weather service.

Other cities in the Southern province of Guangdong that are implementing the measures include Chaozhou, Zhuhai, Dongguan and Foshan.

In Hong Kong, classes were to be suspended on Tuesday and Wednesday, though the stock exchange adopted new rules this year to keep markets open during typhoons.

There were no flights out of Hong Kong after 1000 GMT, according to the airport's website. Cathay Pacific earlier said that more than 500 of its flights were set to be cancelled.

Ragasa -- named after the Filipino word for rapid motion -- is expected to make landfall in the central and western coastal areas of Guangdong within 24 hours.