Hong Kong suspended trading on Monday (October 9), as the remnants of Typhoon Koinu brought heavy rains and strong gales, causing the entire city to remain largely closed.
Koinu had weakened into a severe tropical storm but still brought gale-force winds and heavy rain, according to the city’s Observatory. It was tracking west or west-southwest at around 10 kph (6 miles per hour) as it crossed the western coast of China’s southern Guangdong province.
The city’s Stock Exchange is scheduled to reopen in the afternoon, as strong winds are expected to ease later in the day.
Hundreds of passengers were stranded at Hong Kong’s airport overnight, as well as in underground metro stations, due to Koinu disrupting flights and transportation. The Airport Express train, which connects the airport to the central business district, stopped running, while services at some metro stations were partially suspended. Services have since resumed at limited frequencies as of Monday morning, according to operator MTR.
Koinu, means “puppy” in Japanese. Last week, the typhoon killed one person and injured almost 400 people in Taiwan as it brushed past the south of the island.
(Input from Reuters)