Typhoon Dujuan (2003)

Typhoon Dujuan, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Onyok, was the strongest tropical cyclone to strike the Pearl River delta since Typhoon Hope in 1979. The 13th storm and 7th typhoon of the 2003 Pacific typhoon season, Dujuan developed on August 27 to the east of Taiwan. It initially moved to the northwest, slowly intensifying into a tropical storm while drawing moisture and rainfall over the Philippines. On the island of Luzon, one person was killed and areas were flooded. Dujuan quickly intensified after turning and moving quicker to the west-northwest, developing an eye. It reached peak winds of 150 km/h (93 mph) on September 1, and shortly thereafter passed just south of Taiwan. There, Dujuan left 590,000 people without power, killed three, and caused NT$200 million (NWD, $115 million USD) in crop damage. While moving through the South China Sea, the typhoon developed concentric eyewalls. Dujuan weakened to severe tropical storm status before making landfall on September 2 in southern China, just east of Hong Kong near Shenzhen, Guangdong. The storm dissipated the next day after causing 40 deaths and ¥2.3 billion (CNY, US$277 million) in damage. Most of the deaths were in Shenzhen where the storm moved ashore, and the city experienced a near-total power outage.