Typhoon Meranti slams into Xiamen, leaving Hong Kong unscathed
Observatory cancels warning signal, says city’s weather to remain fine and dry for several days
While leaving Hong Kong unscathed, Meranti slammed into southeastern China, as Xiamen saw scenes of flooded streets, fallen trees and crushed cars, with rescuers having to evacuate people using boats.
Large sections of the city had power supplies cut off, while parts of Xiamen suffered water supply disruptions and some windows on tall buildings shattered, state news agency Xinhua said.
It added that Meranti was the strongest typhoon to hit that part of the country since the founding of Communist China in 1949, and the strongest so far this year anywhere in the world.
Dozens of flights and train services have been cancelled, state television added, disrupting travel at the start of the three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday.