Typhoon Usagi wreaked damage as it passed through the narrow Luzon Strait between the Philippines and Taiwan, finally making landfall in Guangdong, China, Sept. 22.
Weather analysts categorized Usagi as a “super” typhoon as it passed between Taiwan and the Philippines on Saturday. The storm’s windspeed fell on Sunday from over 150 to 109 miles per hour, sparing southern China from a full impact of torrential rain and wind.
Reports indicated 25 deaths in China, eight deaths in the Philippines and nine injured in Taiwan, according to the Associated Press. Analysts expected the storm to hit Hong Kong, but it veered north and spared the bustling city from a more devastating blow.
Dita de Keyser, a BYU employee in Cougarwear from Manila, the capital of the Philippines, said these typhoons happen every year and can be even more dangerous than Usagi.
In downtown Manila the “water was below their knees,” said Keyser. “If it’s a bad storm, normally people would be walking up to their waist in water.”
