HONG KONG, (AFP) - Hong Kong and southern China braced for Typhoon Utor Thursday as it churned across the South China Sea, after claiming almost 30 lives in the Philippines and Taiwan.

The Hong Kong Observatory hoisted the typhoon number three signal, the second level of a five-stage warning system, as Typhoon Utor roared towards the territory. Residents were urged to batten down the hatches, with the observatory warning high winds were on the way.

The observatory is considering the necessity of hoisting a higher signal, possibly number eight later Thursday as Typhoon Utor closes in on Guangdong province in southern China, the observatory's senior scientific officer K.K. Yeung said.
It is not the strongest typhoon in terms of maximum wind near the centre,to hit the region in 20 years, said the observatory's Yeung, but its rather large circulation was what made it unusual.

The typhoon, packing gusts of 170 kilometers (105 miles) per hour, is so large that its effects were being felt simultaneously in the Philippines, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Its hurricane-force winds Wednesday cut power and telephone lines, flattened farms and houses, and left at least 10 Philippine towns and cities in the north of the main island of Luzon under water, Manila's civil defense office said.

Some 28 people were killed dead and 38 others were missing Thursday including Taiwanese and Chinese sailors as the storm passed over the Philippines and Taiwan.

Baguio city, a Philippine mountain resort, bore the brunt of the damage. Floods hit populated valleys and landslides struck elevated areas, burying 14 people alive, said its mayor Bernardo Vergara.

Landslides also left 13 people dead and 26 missing and a Taiwanese-registered fishing boat with seven fishermen onboard disappeared early Wednesday off the Philippines.

The typhoon also swept past the southern tip of Taiwan overnight, leaving one dead and four injured. The dead man was blown into a river by strong winds and drowned in eastern Hualien county, the island's national fire administration said. Rescue operations were also launched for 52 college students stranded in Taiwan's mountains during separate hiking activities.

In Vietnam, typhoon Durian has left nine people dead and three missing in northern Vietnamese provinces neighbouring China since Monday, officials said Thursday.

All the country's northern provinces were hit by the torrential rains and floods that disrupted communications, a disaster official in Tuyen Quang said. At 2:00 p.m. (0600 GMT), the centre of Typhoon Utor was estimated to be some 420 kilometers (260 miles) east-southeast of Hong Kong, moving northwest at about 25 kilometres (15 miles) an hour towards the southern China coast.

The territory's department suspended afternoon classes of all kindergartens and schools with morning and all-day classes were told to implement contingency measures.

The Hong Kong Observatory urged residents to stay away from the shore, check locks, windows and doors. Shopowners were urged to fasten hoardings while boatowners were told to check their moorings. As rough seas amid a high tide began to pound the coast, some ferry services to neighbouring mainland cities were suspended. The highest two tropical cyclone warnings are signals nine and 10 which warn of winds exceeding 117 kph (73 mph) and generally mean a direct hit is expected.

Utor will be the third typhoon to hit Hong Kong this year following Chebi in June, followed by Durian last weekend which killed one person in southern China.