Hong Kong’s weather forecaster downgraded the typhoon warning signal over the city to No 1 standby signal on Sunday afternoon as Severe Tropical Storm Noul weakened into a tropical storm, with most transport services and businesses across the territory resuming gradually.

The Hong Kong Observatory replaced the No 3 strong wind signal with the standby signal, No 1 at 3:20 pm, which meant the storm was still within 800 kilometers of Hong Kong and could still affect the city.

The observatory said in a weather bulletin that, once Noul no longer poses a threat to Hong Kong, it will cancel all tropical cyclone warnings or replace them with the Strong Monsoon Signal, a weather alert issued when summer or winter monsoon winds at sea level surpass 40 kilometers per hour.

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 “There will still be squally showers and thunderstorms over Hong Kong for the rest of today and at first tomorrow. Showers will be heavy at times,” the HKO weather bulletin reads.

“Winds will be occasionally strong offshore and on high ground at first. Seas will still be rough with swells.”

Noul made landfall in Huizhou, Guangdong, at 4 am.

At 3 pm, Noul was estimated to be about 160 kilometers north of Hong Kong and was forecast to move north-northwest at about 15 kilometers per hour into inland Guangdong as it continues to weaken.    

Gale-force winds have littered city streets with debris. The Drainage Services Department reported that eight flooding cases had been confirmed by 1:30 pm – all were cleared within one to two hours.

The government’s public service hotline fielded 88 reports of fallen trees by 1 pm, while the Fire Services Department recorded 243.

By noon, 21 people – nine males and 12 females – had been injured during the typhoon, the Hospital Authority said, adding that they received treatment at public hospitals.

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Speaking to reporters on Sunday morning, an Airport Authority Hong Kong spokesperson said flights are expected to resume around noon and that the Hong Kong International Airport would remain busy through the evening.

Overnight services would be considered if needed, the spokesperson said, adding that normal operations were expected on Monday morning.

The spokesperson said the airport has 675 flights scheduled for Sunday, while about 350 have been cancelled since the storm began.

The Airport Express also resumed service at 9 am on Sunday, the spokesperson added.

The city’s flag carrier Cathay Pacific said it had scrapped all flights to and from Hong Kong from 1:15 am to 6 pm on Sunday, with many of its other services also facing delays.

Budget airline Hong Kong Express also cancelled multiple flights, grounding seven on Saturday and 25 on Sunday, with the disruptions mostly affecting routes between Hong Kong and Taiwan, Bangkok, and Vietnam.

Greater Bay Airlines cancelled its flights between Hong Kong and Taipei for Saturday night and Sunday. Hong Kong Airlines said it had called off several flights on Saturday evening and Sunday between Hong Kong and Bangkok, as well as those going to Tokyo and Osaka in Japan.

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The Mass Transit Railway, Hong Kong’s railway operator, has confirmed that some part of high-speed rail services between Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Station and various Chinese mainland cities will be cancelled from Saturday through to Monday.

Meanwhile, all MTR lines across the city’s rail network have resumed service.

Several of Hong Kong’s main bus operators said most of their daytime routes started resuming services from 12:40 pm. The Marine Department also announced that the Hong Kong-Macao Ferry Terminal in Sheung Wan and the China Ferry Terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui have been reopened.

In a notification on Sunday morning, the Education Bureau said classes of all day schools, including secondary schools, primary schools, special schools, kindergartens, and kindergarten-cum-child care centers, were suspended while arrangements for evening schools will be announced later.

Contact the writer at: wanqing@chinadailyhk.com