Typhoon Haikui (2023)

Typhoon Haikui (Hanna)
Typhoon Haikui at peak intensity, prior to landfall Taiwan on September 3
Meteorological history
FormedAugust 27, 2023 (2023-08-27)
DissipatedSeptember 6, 2023
Very strong typhoon
10-minute sustained (JMA)
Highest winds155 km/h (100 mph)
Highest gusts220 km/h (140 mph)
Lowest pressure945 hPa (mbar); 27.91 inHg
Category 3-equivalent typhoon
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/JTWC)
Highest winds195 km/h (120 mph)
Lowest pressure945 hPa (mbar); 27.91 inHg
Overall effects
Fatalities16 total
Damage$2.31 billion (2023 USD)
Areas affected
IBTrACS

Part of the 2023 Pacific typhoon season

Typhoon Haikui, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Hanna, was the first major storm to hit Taiwan since Megi in 2016 and the first typhoon to do so since Nesat in 2017. It also caused serious rainfall in Hong Kong, making it the wettest tropical cyclone to affect the region. Haikui means sea anemone in Chinese. The eleventh tropical storm and eighth typhoon of the 2023 Pacific typhoon season, Haikui began its life as a broad low-pressure area near the Northern Mariana Islands on August 27. The system intensified to a tropical storm the next day and was named Haikui by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), with the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) following suit shortly thereafter; PAGASA then named the same system as Hanna when it entered the Philippine area of responsibility. In the succeeding days, Haikui reached severe tropical storm strength and eventually became a typhoon, before making landfall near Taitung City, Taiwan on September 3.

The remnants of Haikui caused torrential rain in Hong Kong as it stalled over Pearl River Delta, resulting in issuing a Black rainstorm signal for 16 hours, the longest duration ever since the rainstorm warning system was implemented in 1992. Haikui also further enhanced the southwest monsoon in the Philippines, causing extensive rainfall in Luzon. Overall, Haikui caused US$2.31 billion worth of damages throughout its onslaught.