The Great Hong Kong Typhoon of 1937 was an unnamed typhoon in Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

. It was one of the worst typhoons in Hong Kong history

History of Hong Kong

Hong Kong began as a coastal island geographically located off the southern coast of China. While pockets of settlements had taken place in the region with archaeological findings dating back thousands of years, regular written records were not made...

 killing 11,000 people.

History

Hong Kong harbor

Victoria Harbour

Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbour situated between Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on the South China Sea were instrumental in Hong Kong's establishment as a British colony and its subsequent...

 at the time was the seventh busiest in the world. It was always alive with yacht

Yacht

A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...

s, junk

Junk (ship)

A junk is an ancient Chinese sailing vessel design still in use today. Junks were developed during the Han Dynasty and were used as sea-going vessels as early as the 2nd century AD. They evolved in the later dynasties, and were used throughout Asia for extensive ocean voyages...

s, ferries, sampan

Sampan

A sampan is a relatively flat bottomed Chinese wooden boat from long. Some sampans include a small shelter on board, and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. Sampans are generally used for transportation in coastal areas or rivers, and are often used as traditional fishing boats...

s, freighter

Cargo ship

A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...

s, liner

Liner

Liner or LINER may refer to:In line drawing:* Eye liner, a type of makeup* Liner, a sable brush used by coach paintersIn linings:...

s, men-of-war. The typhoon wind was so strong that observatory instruments capable of registering winds up to 125 mph broke down. Hong Kong Observatory

Hong Kong Observatory

Hong Kong Observatory is a department of the Hong Kong government. The Observatory forecasts weather and issues warnings on weather-related hazards...

 have since recorded the wind with a mean wind average of 59 knots, 68 mph, 109 km/h. The maximum gust was at 130 knots, 149 mph, 240 km/h. The piston of the anemometer

Anemometer

An anemometer is a device for measuring wind speed, and is a common weather station instrument. The term is derived from the Greek word anemos, meaning wind, and is used to describe any airspeed measurement instrument used in meteorology or aerodynamics...

 hit the stops at 130 knots (254.8 km/h) and the true maximum gust could not be recorded.

Other notable typhoons in Hong Kong

• Unnamed typhoon in 1874 2,000 people lost their lives in 6 hours.
• Unnamed typhoon in 1906
• Wanda
  Typhoon Wanda (1962)
  Typhoon Wanda was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in Hong Kong. It was the 59th disturbance in the record-breaking 1962 Pacific typhoon season, forming in August east of the Philippines...
  
   (1962)
• Ruby (1964)
• Rose
  Typhoon Rose (1971)
  Typhoon Rose was Category 4 typhoon that struck the northern Philippines and later eastern China in August 1971...
  
   (1971)
• Typhoon Hope (1979)
• Typhoon Ellen (1983)
• Maggie, Sam, York and Cam (1999)

External links

• S. Campbell, "Typhoons affecting Hong Kong: Case Studies", Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
  Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
  The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology is a public university located in Hong Kong. Established in 1991 under Hong Kong Law Chapter 1141 , it is one of the nine universities in Hong Kong.Professor Tony F. Chan is the president of HKUST...
  
  , April 2005
• A Review of Natural Disasters of the Past