Wipha, a Thai name, passed over the Philippines at tropical storm strength and drenched parts of Taiwan on Saturday. In the Philippines, the storm intensified seasonal monsoon rains, leaving at least a villager dead in floodwaters in northern Cagayan province.

Typhoon Wipha slammed ashore along the southern Chinese coast Sunday evening, after drenching Hong Kong and Macau with heavy rain and whipping wind, the Guangdong meteorological service said.

Hong Kong issued its highest storm warning on Sunday as Typhoon Wipha, packing winds of more than 167 kilometres (103 miles) per hour, brought heavy rain and wind across the territory, forcing the cancellation of more than 200 flights.

While the city reeled under the No 10 typhoon signal, many restaurants remained open with workers forced to navigate the adverse conditions.

The tropical cyclone made landfall in mainland China late Sunday afternoon with winds near to those of a Category 1 Atlantic hurricane.

Hong Kong raises its highest storm warning as Typhoon Wipha sweeps across the region::The city's weather observatory raised its storm signal to No. 10 at 9:20 a.m. (0120 GMT) and said it expected it to remain at that level "for some time".

Tropical storm Wipha is closing in on Northern Vietnam, with its erratic path prompting urgent preparations in Quang Ninh province and the port city of Hai Phong to safeguard residents, infrastructure,

Storm Wipha brought heavy rain to southern Thailand as strong wind battered buildings. Footage shows the violent squalls shaking shop awnings on the island of Koh Samui on Sunday afternoon. In neighbouring Vietnam,