Hong Kong and parts of southern China were on high alert early Wednesday as Super Typhoon Ragasa approached with powerful winds and lashing rain, forcing Chinese authorities to shut down schools and businesses in at least 10 cities.

Ragasa had already toppled trees, torn the roofs off buildings and killed at least two people while ripping through the northern Philippines, where thousands sought shelter in schools and evacuation centres.

The super typhoon was generating maximum sustained winds of 195 kilometres (121 miles) per hour near its centre while moving west across the South China Sea, according to Hong Kong's weather service.

The Hong Kong Observatory issued its second-highest typhoon warning, T9, early Wednesday morning, and said it would consider raising it to the highest-level

See Full Page