Ragasa churned into Guangdong, home to tens of millions of people, with winds up to 145 kilometres (90 miles) per hour, on Wednesday after sweeping past Hong Kong and killing at least 14 in Taiwan.
AFP journalists at the impact point around the city of Yangjiang on Thursday saw fallen trees, while road signs and debris were strewn across the streets.
A light rain and breeze still lingered as residents worked to clean up the damage, however authorities have not reported any storm-related fatalities.
On Hailing — an island administered by Yangjiang — relief workers attempted to clear a huge tree that had fallen across a wide road.
Cars drove on muddy tracks to get around the wreckage as the team worked to saw off branches.
A seafood restaurant had sustained heavy damage, its back roof completely collapsed, or in parts flown away entirely.
“The winds were so strong, you can see it completely ripped everything apart,” said restaurant worker Lin Xiaobing, 50.
“There’s no electricity (at home),” she said while helping clear up the mess inside the restaurant, where the floors were covered in water, mud and debris. “Today, some homes still have electricity and others don’t.”
The island is a popular holiday spot and many locals rely on the tourism industry to make a living.
“We can’t do business here during the National Day,” she said, referring to China’s annual holiday period centred on October 1 but that lasts until Oct 8.
At another village on the east side of the island, Zeng Jitan was working to get his open-air restaurant operational.
“I was inside (when the typhoon came), I didn’t dare go out,” the 64-year-old told AFP outside the restaurant, which had suffered damage despite the structure still being intact.
“The storm was very powerful,” he said. “I was afraid everything would blow down.”
Taiwan fatalities
Ragasa’s passage in Taiwan killed at least 14 and injured dozens more when a barrier lake burst in eastern Hualien county, according to officials who late Wednesday revised the death toll down from 17 after eliminating duplicate cases.
Twenty-two people were still missing on Thursday afternoon, authorities said.
The storm made landfall in mainland China near Hailing Island on Wednesday evening.
By that point authorities across China had already ordered businesses and schools to shut down in at least 10 cities across the nation’s south, affecting tens of millions of people.
Nearly 2.2 million people in Guangdong were relocated by Wednesday afternoon, but local officials later said several cities in the province started lifting restrictions on schools and businesses.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said Ragasa made its second landfall in Beihai, Guangxi, on Thursday morning as a tropical storm.
Chinese authorities earmarked the equivalent of about $49.2 million to support rescue and relief work in regions hit by Typhoon Ragasa, Xinhua news agency said.
Hong Kong battered
Hong Kong authorities said 101 people were treated at public hospitals for injuries sustained during the typhoon as of Wednesday evening, with more than 900 people seeking refuge at 50 temporary shelters across the city.
The Chinese finance hub recorded hundreds of fallen trees and flooding in multiple neighbourhoods.
Many of the city’s tall buildings swayed and rattled in the harsh winds.
About 1,000 flights were affected by Ragasa, the airport authority said Wednesday evening, adding that they expected to return to normal operations within the next two days.
The top typhoon warning was downgraded in Hong Kong on Wednesday afternoon after being in force for 10 hours, 40 minutes — the second-longest on the city’s record.
Hong Kong’s weather service ranked the storm the strongest yet in the northwestern Pacific this year.