A super typhoon named Hua Jasha is approaching Guangdong, China, and officials have issued a rare warning for residents to prepare in advance for “disaster defense.” Citizens in many areas have rushed to supermarkets and markets to buy vegetables, food, and other supplies, causing shelves to empty out quickly.
On social media platforms in China, numerous videos have surfaced showing that on September 22nd and 23rd, in cities such as Zhuhai, Shenzhen, Dongguan, and Zhongshan, some shelves in supermarkets have been cleared out due to panic buying.
One netizen commented, “The strongest typhoon in the world is coming, and the vegetables in supermarkets and markets are all gone, the meat is sold out, I managed to grab some potatoes, greens, and tomatoes.”
Another netizen shared a video saying, “The typhoon is still hundreds of miles away, but the supermarkets have already been cleared out.”
People expressed their concerns, with one saying, “This typhoon is still quite scary. When you walk into the supermarket, you can see that all the vegetables have been swept away. It’s like going back to the time of the pandemic when everyone rushed to buy groceries.”
A resident of Shenzhen stated, “At Walmart on Fuxing Road, goods are being grabbed just like during the pandemic. Every small supermarket is also emptied out. People are hoarding vegetables, meat, bread, instant noodles – everyone going in is stocking up.”
Videos show that most shelves in supermarkets have been emptied out due to the rush of shoppers.
Another netizen posted a video saying, “The strongest typhoon is coming. The whole supermarket in Dongguan is cleared out. Orders for instant noodles have started online to prepare for the category 17 typhoon expected tomorrow! Takeout orders have increased, preparing enough food for the coming days.”
A netizen from Zhuhai shared a video saying, “The typhoon hasn’t arrived yet, as it is every year, a vegetable grabbing battle took place in Zhuhai’s supermarket, everything was sold out in a flash.”
Hua Jasha has become the strongest typhoon in the northwest Pacific this year and is set to directly hit Guangdong Province in China. The maximum wind speeds near the center of the typhoon are above category 17, with a size exceeding the entire Guangdong Province, earning its title as the strongest “Wind King.”
The Guangdong Meteorological Observatory forecasts that from the 23rd to the 24th, there will be heavy rainfall to torrential rain in the east of Guangdong, the central and southern parts of the Pearl River Delta, the southern part of Meizhou, and the southern part of Heyuan. From the 24th to the 25th, there will be heavy rainfall to torrential rain in most parts of the eastern Guangdong, the Pearl River Delta, and the western parts of Guangdong, with locally extremely heavy rainfall.
The Guangdong Meteorological Observatory predicts that Hua Jasha is likely to make landfall in the early hours to afternoon of the 24th along the central and western coasts of Guangdong. It is extremely intense, with a large wind diameter, and possesses extreme characteristics, requiring residents to prepare in advance for “disaster defense.”
Multiple areas in Guangdong have announced the implementation of the “five suspensions” (suspension of classes, work, production, transportation, and business). All high-speed trains and regular trains within Guangdong gradually stopped operation starting from September 22nd, with a full-day suspension on the 23rd.