Typhoon Ragasa, the world’s strongest cyclone so far this year, battered its way across East and Southeast Asia this week, leaving a trail of destruction, death, and disruption in its wake. The storm, which peaked as a super typhoon with sustained winds of 265 kilometers per hour (165 miles per hour), made landfall near Yangjiang in southern China on the evening of September 24, 2025, before weakening as it pushed into northern Vietnam the following day. Despite losing strength, Ragasa remained a potent rain threat, triggering flash floods, landslides, and widespread power outages across the region, according to reports from the Associated Press, BBC, and AFP.
Vietnamese authorities braced for the storm’s arrival by taking no chances. Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính ordered government ministries and local officials to protect critical infrastructure such as dams and hospitals, secure fishing vessels and other coastal assets, and prepare evacuation and search-and-rescue operations. Flights were canceled or rescheduled, and workers trimmed roadside trees in northern provinces to reduce wind hazards. By Thursday afternoon, Ragasa’s sustained winds had dropped to 55 kph (34 mph), but the threat of heavy rain and flooding lingered. The storm was expected to dissipate soon, yet officials warned that flash floods, landslides, and flooding in low-lying areas were still possible.
Vietnam was not the only country in Ragasa’s path. The typhoon had already unleashed devastation in the Philippines and Taiwan before slamming into China. In the Philippines, Ragasa claimed at least 11 lives, including seven fishermen who drowned when their boat overturned in northern Cagayan province on September 22. Two fishermen remained missing as of Thursday, and another tropical storm—named Opong in the Philippines and Bualoi elsewhere—was forecast to hit the country’s east-central region on September 26, with sustained winds of up to 110 kph (68 mph).
Taiwan, too, suffered a heavy toll. The death count was revised downward from 17 to 14 on September 25, after authorities in Hualien County corrected double-counting in the chaos following the storm. The tragedy unfolded when torrential rains from Ragasa caused a barrier lake in the mountains to overflow, unleashing a wall of water onto the town of Guangfu. Residents described the flood as hitting like a “tsunami,” tearing down a major bridge, sweeping cars into homes, and forcing thousands to flee to higher ground. The government said the lake released some 60 million tonnes of water—enough to fill 36,000 Olympic swimming pools—after rain-lashed landslides blocked a river and then gave way. Premier Cho Jung-tai called for an investigation into the causes of death, which predominantly occurred on the first floors of buildings, and urged authorities to “seize the golden rescue window” to find the missing. As of Thursday, 33 people were still unaccounted for in Hualien, and dozens more were injured across the island. President Lai Ching-te pledged a month of his salary to relief efforts and visited the disaster zone, expressing condolences and promising government support to restore normal life.
China bore the brunt of Ragasa’s fury as the storm made landfall in Guangdong province. The city of Yangjiang was among the hardest hit, with over 10,000 trees destroyed and branches floating in submerged streets. Excavators were deployed to clear blocked roads, and nearly half a million households suffered power outages, with more than a third still without electricity by Thursday morning, according to Yangjiang Daily. In Zhuhai, streets were transformed into rivers, and rescuers used inflatable boats to reach stranded residents. Older neighborhoods saw floodwaters inundate ground floors, and communication was cut off with some islands in Jiangmen city, as reported by Southern Weekly. Authorities ordered businesses and schools to shut down in at least 10 cities across southern China, affecting tens of millions of people. Nearly 2.2 million people were relocated in Guangdong by Wednesday afternoon, and Chinese authorities earmarked approximately $49 million for rescue and relief work in affected provinces, including Guangdong, Hainan, and Fujian.
The impact of Ragasa was felt far beyond the initial landfall. In Hong Kong, fierce winds and towering waves battered the city, leaving more than 1,200 trees toppled and about 100 people injured. The international airport, a major global hub, halted operations for 36 hours, with over 1,000 flights canceled or disrupted, affecting roughly 140,000 passengers. A mother and her five-year-old son were in critical condition after being swept into the sea while wave-watching, and a vessel crashed into the shore, shattering a row of glass railings along the waterfront. Residents described terrifying scenes, with one, Sarah Millson, telling The Standard, “It’s quite worrying because you never know what will fly off someone’s roof and that might land on your place. At some points, it was quite terrifying hearing some of the noises coming from outside.” As the winds eased, some Hong Kongers waded into flooded streets to catch fish, a surreal sight amid the devastation.
Macau, too, saw its streets turn into streams, with debris floating on the water and rescue teams deploying inflatable boats to save those trapped by the floods. The local electricity supplier suspended power in some flooded areas for safety, and as the weather calmed, residents began the long cleanup process. In neighboring Guangxi region, schools, businesses, and tourism activities were suspended in several cities, and Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that Ragasa made a second landfall in Beihai as a tropical storm on Thursday morning.
The storm’s rapid weakening as it moved inland was attributed to dry, cold air from the north and its contact with land, which cut off the warm, moist air from the sea that typically fuels such cyclones. Nevertheless, the damage had already been done. Streets in Guangdong’s cities were left submerged, communication was lost with some island communities, and the economic impact is expected to be significant, especially in tourism-dependent areas like Hailing Island.
Throughout the region, the response to Ragasa showcased both the vulnerabilities and the resilience of affected communities. Governments mobilized evacuation, search, and rescue operations, while ordinary people stepped up to help neighbors and strangers alike. In Taiwan, the disaster prompted soul-searching over evacuation protocols, with Premier Cho Jung-tai stating, “Beyond mourning the victims, we must investigate the causes of death, which predominantly occurred on the first floors. Clarifying these factors is essential for refining future evacuation protocols.”
As Ragasa’s remnants continue to bring rain to northern Vietnam and neighboring countries, and as another storm looms in the Pacific, communities across Asia are counting the cost—and beginning the long road to recovery. The scars left by this historic storm will not soon be forgotten, but neither will the stories of courage and solidarity that emerged in its aftermath.