Typhoon Mangkhut leaves Hong Kong in tatters

Mangkhut made landfall in Guangdong, China's most populous province, late afternoon Sunday, killing four people before heading west into neighboring Guangxi province around midnight.
The decision to evacuate towns and cities in southern China came as Hong Kong was left reeling by ferocious winds of up to 173 kilometers per hour (107 miles per hour) and gusts of up to 223 kph (138 mph).

The storm tore off roofs and scaffolding from skyscrapers, shattered windows, shook high-rise buildings and caused serious flooding in low-lying areas as waves of more than three meters (9.8 feet) lashed the coast.
Across the Pearl River Delta in the gambling hub of Macau, hundreds of households were left without power amid extensive flooding, which reached head-height in places close to the shoreline.

Though Hong Kong managed to avoid the same fate as the Philippines, where at least 54 people are believed to have died in the storm, damage to the city was extensive.

On Monday morning, in the neighborhood of Heng Fa Chuen, downed trees, some ripped up by their roots, blocked roads and footpaths, while uprooted bricks from the sidewalk lay everywhere. A school minibus sat on the roadside, smashed by one uprooted tree.

Residential towers in the neighborhood were without water and electricity. Four large tanks of clean water had been provided for residents to bring up, but with the elevators out of service they needed to carry them up stairs, as high up as 22 floors above ground level.

As many as 391 people in Hong Kong sought medical attention Sunday during the storm, according to the local city government. Over 1,500 people sought refuge at temporary shelters. Schools remained closed but many businesses had reopened, despite widespread debris still awaiting cleanup.
Along the coast, the former Portuguese enclave of Macau, now famous for its casinos, was also shut down as it weathered the onslaught. Last year, 10 people died and more than 200 were injured during Super Typhoon Hato, according to official figures.

This year, the city breathed a sigh of relief as the storm passed without any reported causalities. Speaking to CNN, many said the government response had improved dramatically after the Hato disaster.

On Monday, the cleanup was well underway, with workers spraying disinfectant on bags of trash piled up by cleaning crews working around the clock, assisted by hundreds of volunteers from local organizations.