Typhoon Nida

Typhoon Nida was the second typhoon of the season and the first to hit Hong Kong. Typhoon Nepartak was larger, and brought plenty of rain, but hit north of us in Fujian.

As usual, the authorities issued their warnings and everyone braced for impact. As usual, it was a tempest in a teapot. There was some rain, but this is the rainy season. We will probably get a foot of rain this month with or without any typhoons. There was some wind that knocked down a few trees, but we have all seen worse. Hong Kong is a pretty strong city. It takes more than heavy wind to bring any of these buildings down. It is usually the Philippines and Mainland China that gets hit the hardest. Thankfully, I have not heard about any deaths from Nida yet.

When I first moved here, it bothered me when it looked like everyone was panicking and then nothing really happened. It's not that I wanted to watch a catastrophe, but I did not understand why everyone was so worried about a little wind and rain.

Now, I'm glad that the government takes each typhoon so seriously. Most of the typhoons since I have been here never warranted shutting everything down, but it is better that they take the precautions than ignore it and get hit by a bigger storm than anyone expected. As it is, even the smallest typhoons will close down government offices, schools and most transportation. I used to find that frustrating, but now I appreciate getting a day off work. My apartment balcony is an especially nice place to watch a typhoon whirl by.