Five dead, 153 injured after typhoon Hato hit Macao

Residents wade through a water-logged road in Macao, south China, Aug. 23, 2017. Hato, the 13th typhoon to hit China this year, made landfall in the city of Zhuhai in southern China's Guangdong Province at noon Wednesday. Affected by Hato, Macao has canceled all marine transport and most of airlines. (Xinhua)

Five people were confirmed dead after typhoon Hato struck Macao on Wednesday, a spokesperson of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government said Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference, Chan Chi Ping said that 153 others were injured so far.

The Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (MGB) hoisted highest signal No. 10 at 11:30 a.m. local time (0330 GMT).

According to MGB radar map, Hato came across as near as 40 km to the south of Macao with a maximum wind speed of over 140 km per hour.

Under the fierce typhoon, Macao Marine and Water Bureau said all marine transport has been canceled and all ships inside Macao's ports remained alert.

The Macao International Airport announced that among the airlines taking off from Macao, 26 have been canceled and three delayed. For those heading for Macao, 25 have been canceled and nine delayed.

Meanwhile, the MGB also issued Black Storm Surge Warning, the highest one in three levels, to suggest the water level is expected to be above one meter from road level.

Some low-land areas in Macao's northern downtown were flooded by both rain and sea water.

Macao's Civil Emergency Response Center said some 266 cases of accidents have been reported so far, including falling tiles and cement blocks from buildings, advertisement boards blew away by strong wind, trees uprooted, and people trapped in elevators.