BEIJING // Typhoon Nesat made landfall in China yesterday, battering the country with heavy winds and torrential rain.
The storm struck shortly after bringing Hong Kong to a virtual standstill and leaving a trail of death and destruction in the Philippines.
About 300,000 people were moved from at-risk areas of the island of Hainan and thousands of fishing boats were kept in port as schools and businesses closed and streets became flooded.
In Hong Kong, one of Asia's top financial centres, the stock exchange was suspended yesterday.
Trams were also stopped, buses and subway services cut back and most offices and many shops failed to open when the typhoon passed over. Reports described the former British colony as a ghost town.
Scores of trees were knocked over by winds gusting at more than 120kph but damage in Hong Kong was light compared with the Philippines, where the death toll reached 35 with another 45 missing.
Most deaths occurred in and around Manila, while in the countryside 103,000 tonnes of rice was damaged at an estimated cost of more than US$50 million (Dh183.7m), according to reports from Reuters quoting the Philippines' National Food Authority.
Nesat arrived almost a year after Typhoon Megi killed dozens in the Philippines and Taiwan, and two years after more than 900 died in the Philippines from Tropical Storm Ketsana.
The typhoon gusted at up to 170kph on Luzon island.
More than one million people on Luzon remained without power yesterday, although authorities had started to clear roads of debris and fallen trees and many businesses and schools had reopened.
Much of the flooding resulted from the breaching of sea walls in Manila Bay.
At least 25 people were treated at public hospitals for injuries, although there were no reports of deaths.
"It's deadly quiet outside, like a dark, wet ghost town," Gavin Parry, a brokerage managing director who walked to work yesterday, told Bloomberg. He added that there were a few minibuses operating but no public buses, and taxis were asking for a HK$100 (Dh47.1) surcharge.
Another member of Hong Kong's finance community, Frank Huang, head of trading for a securities company, told Bloomberg that traffic was lighter than usual.
"I have to come back to work as trading is still going on in other markets," he said.
Others turned up for work only to find their offices had closed, while nearly 400 flights from the international airport were cancelled, delayed or diverted.
In nearby Macau, a special administrative region of China like Hong Kong, Reuters reported that businesses, shops and many transport services were also inactive.
Ferry services between Macau and Hong Kong were cancelled, although they restarted after Nesat left and continued its journey across the South China Sea towards Hainan.
Nesat made landfall at Wenchang in eastern Hainan at 2.30pm, according to the official Chinese Xinhua news agency, making it the 17th and strongest typhoon to hit China this year.
Hainan suffered more severely in October last year, when it was hit by its worst autumn rains for five decades.
About 300mm of rain fell during a week of downpours that submerged five villages, forced 132,000 people from their homes and left two others missing.
dbardsley@thenational.ae
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Where to buy art books in the UAE
There are a number of speciality art bookshops in the UAE.
In Dubai, The Lighthouse at Dubai Design District has a wonderfully curated selection of art and design books. Alserkal Avenue runs a pop-up shop at their A4 space, and host the art-book fair Fully Booked during Art Week in March. The Third Line, also in Alserkal Avenue, has a strong book-publishing arm and sells copies at its gallery. Kinokuniya, at Dubai Mall, has some good offerings within its broad selection, and you never know what you will find at the House of Prose in Jumeirah. Finally, all of Gulf Photo Plus’s photo books are available for sale at their show.
In Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi has a beautiful selection of catalogues and art books, and Magrudy’s – across the Emirates, but particularly at their NYU Abu Dhabi site – has a great selection in art, fiction and cultural theory.
In Sharjah, the Sharjah Art Museum sells catalogues and art books at its museum shop, and the Sharjah Art Foundation has a bookshop that offers reads on art, theory and cultural history.
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Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
The White Lotus: Season three
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