The gale or storm signal No 8 will remain in force at least until 1 pm on Monday as severe tropical storm Tapah has made landfall over Guangdong province's Taishan and will move away from Hong Kong gradually, the Hong Kong Observatory said.
At 10 am, Tapah was centered about 170 kilometers west-southwest of Hong Kong and is forecast to move northwest or north-northwest at about 18 kilometers per hour across inland Guangdong, according to the HKO's bulletin.
Gale force winds are still affecting many places locally, and winds offshore and on high ground are reaching storm force, the observatory said.
The amber rainstorm warning signal has also been in force since 4:55 am, as heavy rain has fallen or is expected to fall generally over Hong Kong, exceeding 30 millimeters in an hour.
"Under the combined effect of spring tide and storm surge, flooding may occur over parts of the low-lying areas in Hong Kong. A high water level of about 3 meters above Chart Datum was recorded at Tai O, about 0.5 meter above normal," the city's weather forecaster pointed out.
The Education Bureau announced in the early morning that classes of all day schools - including secondary schools, primary schools, special schools, kindergartens, and kindergarten-cum-child care centers - were suspended.
Meanwhile, as at 8:20am, the Home Affairs Department has opened 29 temporary shelters in various districts and 213 people have sought refuge at the shelters.
The government's 1823 Call Centre and the Fire Services Department received four reports and 15 reports of fallen trees respectively as at 8am. No report of landslide or flooding has been received so far.
According to the Hospital Authority, two male have sought medical treatment at the Accident and Emergency Department at a public hospital during the typhoon period.
Tapah will move across inland Guangdong and weaken gradually. The observatory said it will then assess the time of issuing the strong wind signal No 3, depending on the degree of weakening of local winds.
Under the influence of an active southerly airstream, there will still be showers and thunderstorms over the coast of southern China midweek this week.
An anticyclone aloft is expected in the latter part of this week and the weather will be generally fine and persistently very hot, said the HKO.