Southern China on alert for Typhoon Noul as Hong Kong cancels flights

Typhoon Noul is bringing winds and heavy rain to southern China and Hong Kong over the weekend, with the region on high alert and dozens of flights cancelled.

Hong Kong’s Observatory said Noul, which had intensified with maximum sustained winds of 140 kph near its centre, was moving on Saturday steadily across the northeastern part of the South China Sea and edging closer to the coast of eastern Guangdong.

The city’s observatory forecasts Noul could make landfall Sunday morning around the vicinity of the southern Chinese cities of Huizhou and Shanwei, bringing strong winds and squally showers to parts of the region. China’s weather centre, meanwhile, expects Noul to make landfall between late Saturday and early Sunday.

Hong Kong airport’s website showed more than 150 flights had been cancelled for Saturday and Sunday. As Noul approaches Hong Kong, parts of a large scaffolding on a high-rise building collapsed on Saturday afternoon, local police said, adding that initial reports indicated there were no injuries.

China’s National Meteorological Centre expects parts of southeastern Guangdong and the southern coast of Fujian will experience heavy rain over the weekend.