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Tag: super typhoon

  • Old storm clip misrepresented as powerful Typhoon Ragasa

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    Super Typhoon Ragasa swept across the Philippines, Taiwan and southern China in September 2025, bringing fierce winds and pounding rain, but footage of people struggling against gale on a train platform does not show the recent storm. The video in fact depicts a sudden wind storm that hit a railway station in southern China’s Shanwei city in April 2024.

    “Damn, Super Typhoon Ragasa is 230 km/hour, that’s really fast,” says an Indonesian-language TikTok post on September 24, 2025.

    The video of people clinging to a pillar as a powerful burst of wind blows onto a train station platform was viewed more than 23,000 times.

    Screenshot of false TikTok post taken September 24, 2025, with red cross mark added by AFP

    Similar posts linking the video to Typhoon Ragasa circulated across social media posts in various languages, including Chinese, English, Polish, Malay and Thai.

    The storm, branded the year’s most powerful yet by weather authorities in Hong Kong, also hit the Philippines, Taiwan and Macau before crashing through southern China with winds up to 145 kilometres per hour (90 miles per hour) (archived link).

    It ripped down trees, destroyed fences and blasted signs off buildings in Guangdong province, home to tens of millions of people.

    Ragasa’s passage in Taiwan killed at least 14 and injured dozens more when a barrier lake burst in eastern Hualien county, according to officials.

    In financial hub Hong Kong, the typhoon caused flooding, uprooted trees and grounded hundreds of passenger flights.

    However, the circulating clip is old.

    Reverse image searches on Google found screenshots from the video published in Taiwanese media reports about a strong storm that hit Shanwei railway station in Guangdong on April 27, 2024 (archived here and here).

    The clip was also shared on Weibo on April 29, 2024 (archived link). A sign reading “Shanwei Railway Station” in both simplified Chinese and English can be seen at the beginning of the clip.

    <span>Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared video (L) and a corresponding screenshot from an old Taiwanese media report</span>

    Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared video (L) and a corresponding screenshot from an old Taiwanese media report

    The video corresponds to a geotagged photo of the station on Google Maps (archived link).

    <span>Screenshot comparison of the false post (L) and a picture from Google Maps</span>

    Screenshot comparison of the false post (L) and a picture from Google Maps

    The Chinese state-affiliated online news portal for Nanfang Daily published a report on September 23, 2025 debunking the claim the video was taken during Typhoon Ragasa (archived link).

    The report states Shanwei authorities said the weather was stable at the station that day.

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  • Super Typhoon Ragasa path threatens East Asia: Map and what to know

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    Thousands of villagers in the Philippines have been moved to safety as Super Typhoon Ragasa brings torrential rains and powerful winds as it passes over the archipelago on its way toward Hong Kong and southern China.

    Why It Matters

    The storm is skirting the northern Philippines and southern Taiwan on Monday and is expected to slam into southern China’s densely populated Guangdong province, and the Asian financial hub Hong Kong, from Tuesday.

    It is likely to disrupt travel and commerce in the region for at least two days.

    A man walks along a road in heavy rain from Super Typhoon Ragasa in Lal-lo town, Cagayan province, the Philippines on September 22, 2025. Taiwan.

    John Dimain/AFP/Getty Images

    What To Know

    At around midday on Monday in the Philippines, the storm was centered just to the north of its northernmost island of Luzon, roaring over the waters separating the Philippines from southern Taiwan.

    “Life-threatening conditions persist over the northern position of northern Luzon,” the Philippine state weather agency PAGASA said. “Widespread incidents of severe flooding and landslides expected.”

    Ragasa had sustained winds of 134 miles per hour and gusts of up 165 mph as it headed west at 12 mph and the weather agency warned of a “high risk of life-threatening storm surge” of more than 3 meters (around 10 feet.)

    Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. suspended government work and classes at all levels on Monday in the capital and 29 provinces in the main northern Luzon region.

    More than 500,000 people in six northern provinces have been evacuated, a disaster official told DZRH radio, Reuters reported. The number is expected to rise as authorities mobilize more residents.

    Philippine domestic flights were suspended in northern provinces and fishing boats and inter-island ferries were banned from leaving ports due to the very rough seas.

    visualization
    A map shows the known and projected paths of Typhoon Ragasa from September 22-26.

    Taiwan issued a sea and land typhoon warning, especially for southern parts of the island, while Hong Kong warned of rapidly worsening weather on Tuesday.

    Guangdong province in China raised its wind emergency response to Level II, the second-highest in a four-tier warning system, on Monday, while schools in the cities of Zhuhai and Jiangmen will be suspended from Tuesday, the China Daily reported.

    The storm was expected to have a severe impact in Guangdong until Thursday, the newspaper said, citing the provincial meteorological observatory.

    What People Are Saying

    Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a statement to media: “Preemptive evacuations have been conducted and we are immediately responding to the needs of those in evacuation centers. We are closely monitoring the situation, and all government agencies are on alert to provide assistance wherever and whenever needed.”

    What Happens Next

    The storm will hit Hong Kong on Tuesday and then move into southern China’s Guangdong province.

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  • West Pacific cyclones jockey to become season’s first super typhoon

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    Typhoon Ragasa continued to intensify over the weekend in the western Pacific, raising concerns that some communities in Southeast Asia could face a super typhoon over the next week.

    The cyclone, known in the Philippines as “Nando,” reached typhoon status on Saturday and was expected to reach the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane by the start of the workweek.

    Satellite imagery showed a distinct eye had formed before the cyclone moved into the Luzon Strait, between the Philippines and Taiwan.

    The worst of the weather was expected to stay south of Taiwan but clip the northern Philippines as the system is forecast to move westward into the South China Sea.

    Satellite observations estimated that water temperatures are in the range of 82–88 degrees Fahrenheit ahead of the cyclone, which is considered sufficient to allow for significant intensification.

    While the definition of a super typhoon varies among meteorological organizations, most use the benchmark of sustained wind speeds of at least 150 mph, which is the equivalent to a strong Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

    By the end of the upcoming workweek, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center expects the system’s final landfall to occur somewhere west of Hong Kong, and due to its slow forward movement, it may produce several feet of rainfall over countries such as Vietnam and Laos.

    Hurricane Hunters Fly Into World’s Worst Weather. See Which Storm Was The Bumpiest

    In addition to Ragasa, Neoguri is also expected to become a powerful typhoon, but because of its more northern latitude in the western Pacific, it will mostly remain a concern only for marine interests.

    Neoguri is expected to become more annular in appearance, meaning its eye and central dense overcast will resemble a tire or a doughnut in shape.

    An annular appearance typically means that a cyclone is resistant to environmental factors, such as dry air and hostile upper-level winds, which can help prolong the system’s lifespan.

    What Is An Annular Style Of Hurricane?

    Ragasa and Neoguri are the 18th and 19th named storms to form in the basin during what has been a slow and delayed start to the season.

    While the season technically runs year-round, the first named system didn’t form until June 11, marking the fifth-slowest start on record.

    According to computer models, additional tropical disturbances are expected to develop during the coming weeks, but fortunately, none appear as impactful as Ragasa.

    Original article source: West Pacific cyclones jockey to become season’s first super typhoon

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