Oil terminal cargo handling in Hong Kong, along with pilotage and bunkering services, remained suspended on 24 September as Severe Typhoon Ragasa moved westward across the northern South China Sea.
At 15:00 local time, the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO) reported the storm was centred near 21.5°N, 112.5°E—about 190 kilometres west-southwest of the city—with maximum sustained winds of 175 km/h near its centre.
HKO kept its Gale or Storm Signal No. 8 in force for much of Wednesday before lowering it to Strong Wind Signal No. 3 at 20:20, after having briefly escalated to Hurricane Signal No. 10 earlier in the day.
The agency stated: “THE HURRICANE SIGNAL, NO. 10, IS IN FORCE. THIS MEANS THAT WINDS WITH MEAN SPEEDS OF 118 KILOMETRES PER HOUR OR MORE ARE EXPECTED.”
The Marine Department had advised on 22 September that pilotage service would be suspended from 08:30 on 23 September, and shipping agents confirmed a complete shutdown of port operations.
Regional energy updates noted that bunkering across Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Xiamen was halted for two to three days.
LNG terminals in Guangdong and Guangxi also curtailed or suspended cargo receipts around 24–25 September.
