Video: Floodwater Breaks Hotel Door As Super Typhoon Ragasa Hits Hong Kong

After leaving deadly destruction in Taiwan and the Philippines, Super Typhoon Ragasa, one of the strongest in years to hit East Asia, brought in waves taller than lampposts onto Hong Kong's shores early on Wednesday as it halted life on the southern Chinese coast. 

In Hong Kong, fierce winds blew away parts of a pedestrian bridge's roof and knocked down hundreds of trees across the city. A vessel crashed into the shore, shattering a row of glass railings along the waterfront. 

A video widely shared online showed waves of water crashing through the doors of a hotel and flooding its interiors. The hotel has not immediately commented on the incident. But staff were seen cleaning up the lobby, with parts of its exterior damaged.

Glass doors SMASHED by torrent of floodwater

Knocking out hotel guests & everything in its path pic.twitter.com/hYh0brSRTi

— RT (@RT_com) September 24, 2025

Areas around some rivers and promenades were also flooded, including cycling lanes and playgrounds. At several promenade restaurants, furniture was scattered chaotically by the winds. Over 60 injured people were treated at hospitals.

In China, nearly 1.9 million people were relocated across Guangdong province. The national weather agency forecast the super typhoon would make landfall between the cities of Yangjiang and Zhanjiang in the evening. Schools, factories and transit services were suspended in about a dozen cities.

17 Dead in Taiwan

At least 17 people have died, and scores remain trapped or missing in eastern Taiwan after Ragasa caused a mountain lake to burst its banks, according to authorities. The barrier lake in Hualien County, formed by landslides triggered by earlier heavy rain in the island's sparsely populated east, burst its banks on Tuesday afternoon, sending torrents of muddy water into the nearby township of Guangfu.

Visuals shared on social media show the lake overflowing with catastrophic flooding in the mountain town. 

Lake overflows with catastrophic flooding, following landslide

14 dead, 18 injured in Taiwan https://t.co/sJkA350DDh pic.twitter.com/a2heFY0FYS

— RT (@RT_com) September 24, 2025

The inundated Guangfu is located in the beauty spot of Hualien, thronged by tourists. It has about 8,450 people, more than half of whom sought safety on higher floors of their homes or on higher ground. Taiwan's Central News Agency said rescuers were going door-to-door to check on these residents.

Sub-tropical Taiwan, frequently hit by typhoons, normally has a well-oiled disaster mechanism that averts mass casualties by moving people out of potential danger zones quickly. But residents in Guangfu said there was insufficient warning when the lake overflowed during torrential rains brought by the super typhoon.

Inquiry Ordered

Taiwan's Premier Cho Jung-tai has called for an inquiry into what went wrong with evacuation orders. Cho said the immediate priority was to find the 152 still missing, but questions remained.

"For the 14 who have tragically passed away, we must investigate why evacuation orders were not carried out in the designated areas...This is not about assigning blame, but about uncovering the truth," he told reporters in Guangfu.

'Floodwater Hit Like A Tsunami'

Guangfu postman Hsieh Chien-tung told news agency Reuters that floodwater hit the city like a "tsunami". He said he was able to flee to the second floor of the post office just in time. Chien-tung said he later got home to find his car had been swept into the living room.

Fire officials said all the dead and missing were in Guangfu, where the waters destroyed a major road bridge across a river.