HONG KONG - Tens of millions of people in Hong Kong, Shenzhen and other southern Chinese megacities sheltered indoors on Friday as Super Typhoon Saola threatened to become the strongest storm to hit the region in decades.

Hundreds of flights were cancelled across the region, the start of the school year was delayed in Hong Kong, and the rain-drenched finance hub’s streets were deserted.

China’s national weather office had predicted Saola “may become the strongest typhoon to make landfall in the Pearl River Delta since 1949”, referring to a low-lying region that includes Hong Kong, Macau and Guangdong province.

With a direct hit possible, the authorities in Hong Kong raised the warning level on Friday evening to the city’s highest – “T10” – which had only been issued 16 times since World War II before Saola.

“Do not go outside and stay away from exposed windows and doors. Make sure you have a safe place to shelter,” the Hong Kong Observatory warned.

Packing sustained winds of 210kmh, Saola was expected to skirt the city by midnight.

Guangdong’s tech hub Shenzhen – home to 17.7 million people – opened shelters for people to take refuge, and planned to halt public transport.

Trains in and out of Guangdong were also suspended from 8pm on Friday to 6pm on Saturday, while the national flood defence agency raised its emergency response for prevention to its second-highest level.

“It’s going to affect our life,” said Mr Wu Wenlai, 43, who had to close his restaurant in a Shenzhen suburb.

“My eldest son was planning to fly to Chengdu today for university and his flight has been cancelled now.”

Dozens of delivery drivers braved strong winds and rain to reach residents hunkering down indoors.

“I will work until I feel it’s too dangerous,” delivery driver Chai Jijie, 22, told AFP.

“People don’t want to go out but want to stock up on snacks and other goods. There are lots of delivery orders.”

The Hong Kong authorities warned that Saola may cause a storm surge during the night.

“The maximum water level may reach a historical record... There will be serious flooding, the flood depth in some areas may be more than 1m,” the observatory said.

The last time Hong Kong issued a T10 warning was in 2018, when Typhoon Mangkhut slammed into the finance hub, shredding trees and unleashing floods, and leaving more than 300 people injured.

In mainland China, it affected more than three million people in the southern provinces, killing six.

More intense typhoons

Southern China is frequently hit in summer and autumn by typhoons that form in the warm oceans east of the Philippines and then travel west.

Climate change has increased the intensity of tropical storms, with more rain and stronger gusts leading to flash floods and coastal damage, experts say.

In Hong Kong, businesses duct-taped glass displays and windows, while shoppers reported that frozen foods and vegetables in supermarkets were cleared out.

In the low-lying fishing village of Lei Yue Mun – which is prone to flooding – water seeped into shops, prompting residents to set up sandbags and board up doors.

“I hope we can save the tools needed for our business, like the fridge. We elevated them so the water wouldn’t damage the (electronics),” a restaurant operator surnamed Lee told a local TV station.

In eastern Hong Kong’s Heng Fa Chuen – a coastal residential area and the site of devastation during 2018’s Typhoon Mangkhut – officers in orange vests urged storm watchers to go home, as trees leaned sideways from the heavy gusts.

Neighbouring casino hub Macau had also issued its third-highest typhoon warning by mid-afternoon.

Saola is one of three tropical cyclones to have formed in the north-west Pacific Ocean and South China Sea. The second, Haikui, is approaching Taiwan, and is set to hit the island on Sunday before heading towards China’s province of Fujian.

The third, Kirogi, the most distant from land, was still classed as a tropical storm. AFP, REUTERS