bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP

As Super Typhoon Ragasa approaches Hong Kong, we take a look at SCMP’s coverage of some of the worst storms the city has experienced. Click here to read more.
Great mop-up is under way
by Staff Reporters
This article was first published on August 3, 1979
Threats of widespread landslides and flooding hang over Hong Kong today as it licks its wounds from Typhoon Hope.
Weathermen have forecast heavy rains – totalling about 100 mm – in the wake of the strongest typhoon in eight years.
Mopping-up continued feverishly overnight to clear the roads throughout the territory.

Hope hit Hong Kong with winds of up to 128 knots recorded at the Star Ferry, leaving behind four dead, 260 injured and a trail of wreckage.
(The death toll from Typhoon Hope increase to 12 people.)
Hurricane force winds brought Hong Kong to a complete standstill with all public transport – air, sea and land – suspended at the height of the typhoon.
They also drove four ships aground and 11 others into collisions.
Damage, with debris strewn all over the place, is expected to run into millions of dollars.
The No 10 signal was hauled down after a day of chaos at 4.45pm and the No 3 signal came into force at 8.35pm.
The No 10 signal was last hoisted in 1975 during the passage of Typhoon Elsie and in 1971 during Typhoon Rose.
It has only been hoisted 11 times since 1946.
Hope claimed its first fatality about 2.20pm when a 56-year-old woman was hit by a falling object in a house in Ng Tung Chai Village, Tai Po.
The woman, still unidentified early this morning, was taken to the Jockey Club clinic in Tai Po but was dead on arrival.

A 50-year-old pedestrian was electrocuted by a fallen power cable in Portland Street, Mong Kok, about 4pm.
The man, also unidentified, was dead on arrival at Kwong Wah Hospital.
The third victim, a 66-year-old Yuen Long man, was crushed to death when his house in Ng Ka Tsuen collapsed.
Mr Tsang Pang-kei was dead before reaching Pok Oi Hospital.
Later in the evening, a 52-year-old woman was buried in a landslide when tons of mud rushed into her hut in Butterfly Valley Road, Laichikok.
Ambulancemen rushed Kuk Sau-ying to Princess Margaret Hospital but she died before arrival.
Most of the injured were hit by flying fragments.
All but 94 were treated for cuts and sent home.
The 66 men and 28 women admitted to hospital were last night reported to be generally in satisfactory condition.
The worst of Hope’s battering began about 1pm when the hurricane signal No 10 was hoisted.
Almost everything came to a standstill, coupled with a widespread blackout in various districts.
But it was the first time the Island and Kowloon remained linked during a major typhoon because the cross-harbour tunnel stayed open.

The Royal Observatory, which had warned of Hope’s potential ferocity on Wednesday, replaced the typhoon signal No 3 with No 8 at 7am when it was 170 miles from Hong Kong.
The signal was changed to No 9 at 12.35pm and increased to the maximum of No 10 half an hour later.
As Hope swept past, about 3,000 people sought refuge in 191 land typhoon shelters arranged by city district offices and district offices of the New Territories Administration.
The Southern shelters in Hong Kong accommodated the largest number of people: 431.
The Mong Kok shelter had the highest figure in Kowloon: 229.
About 650 people were evacuated when their homes were threatened by floodings and landslides.
Most of those affected were in Wong Tai Sin, Chai Wan, Causeway Bay and Tsuen Wan.

In Pak Tin Har, Tsuen Wan, 200 people were evacuated when their huts were threatened by a landslide.
As Hope moved into western Guangdong, it weakened rapidly and became a tropical storm by midnight.


Temperature in Hong Kong to drop to 14 degrees and remain cool till midweek

Chilly weekend ahead for Hong Kong as temperatures set to hit 15 degrees

Hong Kong registers a low of 13.2 degrees Celsius, coldest so far this autumn

Hong Kong registers low of 13.2 degrees Celsius, coldest so far this autumn

Hong Kong weather

When Typhoon Hope battered Hong Kong in 1979, killing 12 and injuring 260 – SCMP archive

A lorry lying on its side after Typhoon Hope hit Hong Kong on August 2, 1979. Photo: Chan Kiu

A clipping from SCMP’s August 3, 1979 front cover. Photo: SCMP

A pedestrian rushing back home when Typhoon Hope swept Hong Kong on August 2, 1979. Photo: Chan Kiu

Huge waves hit the Western District shore during Typhoon Hope. Photo: P. Y. Tang

Fallen signboards after Typhoon Hope swept across Hong Kong. Photo: Chan Yuen-man

As Super Typhoon Ragasa approaches, here are the biggest storms in Hong Kong’s history

Hong Kong has faced several super typhoons over the decades. Photo: Chu Ming-hoi

Cars are submerged as Typhoon Hato hit the city in 2017. Photo: David Wong

A young survivor seeks solace in a rescuer’s arms during Typhoon Hope in 1979. Photo: SCMP

Typhoon Rose causes severe damage as it hits Hong Kong in 1971. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong ships lie wrecked in the aftermath of Typhoon Wanda in 1962. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific warns of ‘significant’ impact on operations from Ragasa

Cathay Pacific says it has moved some aircraft away from Hong Kong, without specifying the locations. Photo: Dickson Lee

Super Typhoon Ragasa: in China, Shenzhen to evacuate 400,000; Guangdong suspends trains

A cloud map from the Fengyun-4 satellite shows Super Typhoon Ragasa, which is expected to make landfall in China on Wednesday. Photo: handout

News

Hong Kong

Society

Hong Kong was hit by Typhoon Hope in August 1979, resulting in 12 deaths and widespread economic damage across the city


Hong Kong was hit by Typhoon Hope in August 1979, resulting in 12 deaths and widespread economic damage across the city.


From our archives

Hong Kong society

Super Typhoon Ragasa

China

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}On This Day | When Typhoon Hope battered Hong Kong in 1979, killing 12 and injuring 260 – SCMP archive

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Hong Kong was hit by Typhoon Hope in August 1979, resulting in 12 deaths and widespread economic damage across the city

Great mop-up is under way

On This Day | When Typhoon Hope battered Hong Kong in 1979, killing 12 and injuring 260 – SCMP archive

Hong Kong was hit by Typhoon Hope in August 1979, resulting in 12 deaths and widespread economic damage across the city