In 1900, 23
tropical cyclones
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...
were observed in the western
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
, north of the
equator
The equator is the circle of latitude that divides Earth into the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Southern Hemisphere, Southern Hemispheres of Earth, hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, about in circumferen ...
and west of the
International Date Line
The International Date Line (IDL) is the line extending between the South and North Poles that is the boundary between one calendar day and the next. It passes through the Pacific Ocean, roughly following the 180.0° line of longitude and de ...
. In that region of the world, cyclones that attain
maximum sustained winds of at least are known as
typhoon
A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...
s. Of the 23 storms, 13 were tracked by the
Hong Kong Observatory.
Activity occurred from January to December, although the majority of the storms formed from June to November.
In July, a storm moving across
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
(then known as
Formosa) damaged over 1,000 houses and left 10 fatalities. On August 19, a typhoon moving through western Japan killed 51 people when it wrecked a fishing fleet. In September, another storm in Japan killed three people in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
and one person in
Ono. A series of typhoons hit
Vietnam
Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
(then known as Annam) from September to November, the first of which causing 1,600 deaths when it hit the region on September 29. A late-season storm hit
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
on November 10, catching residents off guard, capsizing 270 boats, and killing over 200 people. On November 13, Guam was hit by its most intense typhoon on record, recording a minimum
barometric pressure
Atmospheric pressure, also known as air pressure or barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1,013.2 ...
of . The powerful winds wrecked nearly all of the island's crops and decimated several small towns, resulting in over 100 deaths.
January–August
Two storms were reported during January, and another developed in March.
On June 19, a storm was observed in the
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...
and dissipated on June 23 after moving ashore southern
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. The next system was observed on July 2 to the east of the
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, which moved northwestward and dissipated north of
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
on July 6 after striking the island the day prior near
Taitung City
Taitung City () is a county-administered city and the county seat of Taitung County, Taiwan. It lies on the southeast coast of Taiwan facing the Pacific Ocean. Taitung City is the most populous subdivision of Taitung County and it is one of the ...
. Across the island, at least 130 houses were destroyed, and another 875 were damaged, killing 10 people. The overflown
Tamsui River wrecked several bridges and boats near
Tamsui.
Four tropical cyclones were observed in August.
A tropical cyclone was observed on August 13 to the east of the Philippines, south of
Okinawa. The storm moved northeastward through the
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...
, spurring storm warnings on August 18 for the main islands of Japan. On the next day, the typhoon moved across
Kyushu
is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...
and
Shikoku
is the smallest of the List of islands of Japan#Main islands, four main islands of Japan. It is long and between at its widest. It has a population of 3.8 million, the least populated of Japan's four main islands. It is south of Honshu ...
into the
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...
. At
Miyazaki, a
pressure
Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and eve ...
of was recorded. The cyclone brought of rainfall to Kyushu, spreading as far east as
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
, which caused flooding and disrupted railway service. High waves affected Ujina and
Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
, with a
storm surge
A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...
at the latter location. The winds knocked down telegraph lines west of Hiroshima, and caused the price of tobacco to rise because of damage to the crop. In
Ehime Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Ehime Prefecture has a population of 1,334,841 and a geographic area of 5,676 km2 (2,191 sq mi). Ehime Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the northeast, Toku ...
, the cyclone struck a fleet of fishing boats, killing 51 people, leaving 13 missing, and with 20 others rescued.
Along the western coast of what is now
Albay
Albay (IPA: ), officially the Province of Albay (; ; Baybayin, ᜎᜎᜏᜒᜄᜈ᜔ ᜈᜅ᜔ ᜀᜎ᜔ᜊᜌ᜔), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Bicol Region of the Philippines, mostly on the southeastern part of the isla ...
in the Philippines, a typhoon wrecked a ship on August 17. The crew assisted passengers into rescue boats, although they had to wait an additional six days until they were rescued by another ship. No one was injured in the wreckage.
On August 18, a storm was observed moving northwestward toward the Ryukyu Islands, where it was last noted on August 23. Northwest of
Luzon
Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...
on August 19, a tropical cyclone was observed. Moving westward, the system moved across the Chinese island of
Hainan
Hainan is an island provinces of China, province and the southernmost province of China. It consists of the eponymous Hainan Island and various smaller islands in the South China Sea under the province's administration. The name literally mean ...
on August 21.
All ships were evacuated in the harbor at Macau due to the storm.
After crossing the
Gulf of Tonkin
The Gulf of Tonkin is a gulf at the northwestern portion of the South China Sea, located off the coasts of Tonkin ( northern Vietnam) and South China. It has a total surface area of . It is defined in the west and northwest by the northern co ...
, the cyclone dissipated upon striking
Vietnam
Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
on August 23.
On the same day, another storm was observed northeast of Luzon. The new cyclone tracked north-northwestward, hitting Taiwan on August 26. It continued and dissipated over the southeastern mainland of China. Another new cyclone existed from August 25–29, originating west of Luzon and moving northward until its dissipation over southern China.
September–December
Vietnam storms
A series of five storms affected the Philippines from September to November.
A tropical cyclone developed over the southern Philippines on September 23. It moved through the
Visayas
The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands (Bisayan languages, Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; Filipino language, Filipino: ''Kabisayaan'' ), are one of the three Island groups of the Philippines, principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, a ...
and crossed
Palawan
Palawan (, ), officially the Province of Palawan (; ), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of . The capital and largest c ...
into the South China Sea on a northwest trajectory. Curving to the west, the storm dissipated after moving making landfall southeast of
Danang (then known as Tourane), Vietnam, on September 29. The storm killed 1,600 people and left another 4,500 people homeless. 48 hours of strong winds destroyed rice fields and many buildings.
Another tropical cyclone developed over the Philippines on September 29, moving west-northwestward across Palawan into the South China Sea. On October 4, the storm moved ashore Vietnam near Danang, dissipating shortly thereafter. On October 5, a tropical cyclone was first observed near
Samar
Samar ( ) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided in ...
, Philippines. Moving westward through the archipelago, the storm crossed the South China Sea and dissipated over Vietnam on October 9, having struck
Quảng Ngãi
Quảng Ngãi () is a city in central Vietnam. It serves as the capital city of Quảng Ngãi Province. Quảng Ngãi City borders Tư Nghĩa District to the South and West, Sơn Tịnh District to the Northwest and Bình Sơn District to the ...
. A similar storm was first observed on October 12. The system also moved westward across the South China Sea, striking eastern Vietnam near
Sông Cầu on October 17. It dissipated the next day. Along the Vietnam coast, the storm left heavy damage several miles inland, decimating coffee and tea plantations.
Another storm originated on October 30 east of Samar, and like many other storms in the season, moved westward through the Philippines and across the South China Sea. It struck
Sông Cầu along eastern Vietnam on November 3, dissipating the next day.
Hong Kong typhoon
A tropical cyclone was first observed east of the Philippines on November 4.
It moved through the Philippines and curved to the northwest and later north in the South China Sea. The typhoon had a diameter up to wide, prompting the
Hong Kong Observatory to issue a
warning signal on November 8. Two days later, the system moved over eastern
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, producing peak winds of and a minimum pressure of ; this remains the lowest pressure reading for the month of November. As the storm arrived late in the year, many residents did not heed the warnings,
as the gunshot to mark the warning did not occur due to weapon malfunction.
The storm was known as the Geng-Zi typhoon disaster, due to 1900 being known as the "Geng-Zi" year.
The storm dissipated late on November 10 over southern China.
A rare November typhoon, the storm produced severe waves that damaged and sank 270 boats in Hong Kong's harbor, including a British
gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
History Pre-steam ...
and a dredge.
Portuguese ships in the region assisted crew members whose ships were damaged,
and ship builders filled many orders in 1901 to compensate for the lost ships.
High waves also damaged a
Star Ferry pier. In
Yau Ma Tei, the high winds damaged every shed built on
reclaimed land
Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamatio ...
, and many houses were damaged throughout Hong Kong.
Along the
Queen's Road, several buildings collapsed, killing eight.
Many trees, lamps, and telephone posts were knocked down.
The storm killed more than 200 people in Hong Kong, causing the most damage of any storm there since a
typhoon in 1874.
High winds were also reported in nearby Macau, although there was no serious damage there.
Guam typhoon

On November 13, a typhoon struck Guam, accompanied by a
storm surge
A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...
, inundating
Hagåtña and
Inarajan. A pressure of was recorded on the island, the most intense Guam typhoon on record, and the severest in 40 years.
Several towns were entirely destroyed, and 100 people were killed.
Many government buildings, including the
Plaza de España, lost their roofs and were damaged.
The
USS Yosemite, docked at
Apra Harbor
Apra Harbor, also called Port Apra, is a deep-water port on the western side of the United States territory of Guam. It is considered one of the best natural ports in the Pacific Ocean. The harbor is bounded by Cabras Island and the Glass Breakwat ...
, was damaged when strong waves pushed the ship into reefs, damaging the propeller and rudder. The crew evacuated after drifting for 36 hours, salvaging any valuables before deliberately sinking the damaged Yosemite.
Five crew members died on the ship. Those left homeless by the storm resided in schools and jails in the weeks after the storm, and many people died of the flu due to residing in their damaged houses. Nearly all of the island's crops were destroyed, forcing the government to distribute food to the island's residents.
It took two years for the island's coconut trees to regrow.
Other systems
Four storms were observed in each month from September to November, and an additional two storms were observed in December.
A tropical cyclone developed between
Guam
Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...
and the western
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the cen ...
on September 1. It moved west-northwestward, striking Luzon near
Nueva Ecija
Nueva Ecija, officially the Province of Nueva Ecija ( ; ; ; ), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the city of Palayan, while Cabanatuan, its former capital, is the largest Local gove ...
on September 7. The storm crossed the island and emerged into the South China Sea on the next day. On September 11, the typhoon made landfall in southern China southeast of
Maoming
Maoming, alternately romanized as Mowming, (Maoming Yue: ">ɐu22 mɪŋ21/nowiki>) is a prefecture-level city located in southwestern Guangdong province, China. Facing the South China Sea to the city's south, Maoming city borders Zhanjiang to ...
, dissipating the next day.
High winds and tides damaged the
Praia Grande in Macau.
On September 11, a tropical cyclone was observed south of Japan, moving westward. It moved westward through the
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...
, where a pressure of was recorded, and many houses were damaged. The storm later passed north of Taiwan (then known as Formosa), killing several people. The Tamsui River overflowed due to the typhoon, which flooded 922 houses around
Taipei
, nickname = The City of Azaleas
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country ...
. A ship was washed ashore, and rail traffic was interrupted. The cyclone later moved ashore mainland China near
Wenzhou
Wenzhou; Chinese postal romanization, historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in China's Zhejiang province. Wenzhou is located at the extreme southeast of Zhejiang, bordering Lishui, Zhejiang, Lishui to the west, Taizhou, Zheji ...
on September 15, dissipating two days later. The remnants spread northward across the Korean peninsula.
On September 24, a storm was observed southeast of Okinawa. Two days later, the storm passed between
Miyakojima and Okinawa. On September 27, the typhoon passed near
Ōshima and continued quickly northward, striking mainland Japan near
Shizuoka. A minimum pressure of was recorded offshore southern Kyushu. After bypassing Tokyo on September 28, the storm emerged into the open ocean near
Sendai
is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan.
...
. Most of Japan was affected by the strong winds disrupting communications. Near
Yokohama
is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...
, winds knocked down signs and power lines while also causing roof damage. In
Kobe
Kobe ( ; , ), officially , is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. With a population of around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's List of Japanese cities by population, seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Port of Toky ...
, 68 houses were destroyed, along with several factories, were 80 boats were lost. Hundreds of trees were knocked down, one of which killed a man in
Ono. At the
Sadamisaki Peninsula along the western tip of Shikoku, rainfall reached , and floods reached knee-deep in Tokyo. Three people died in the city; one due to a fallen tree, another due to a damaged chimney, and the other due to a wrecked roof.
On October 18, a storm was observed east of northern Luzon. Moving northwestward, it struck and dissipated over Taiwan on October 21.
From November 15–16, a tropical cyclone was moving northeastward to the south of Okinawa.
On December 8, a typhoon was observed east of the Visayas island group of the Philippines. It moved westward, crossing
Leyte
Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census.
Since the accessibility of land has been ...
, and accelerated to the northeast. The storm was last observed on December 12.
Several boats were washed ashore or wrecked during the storm.
The final storm of the season persisted southeast of Guam from December 13–20.
Possibly related to it was a typhoon that was first observed at the low latitude of 4º
N southeast of
Palau
Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...
.
See also
*
1900 Atlantic hurricane season
The 1900 Atlantic hurricane season was a below average hurricane season that featured the ''1900 Galveston hurricane, Galveston hurricane'', the deadliest natural disaster in the history of the United States. A total of 10 tropical cyclones ...
*
1900–09 Pacific hurricane seasons
*
1900s North Indian Ocean cyclone seasons
References
{{Tropical cyclone season, 1900
Pre-1940 Pacific typhoon seasons
1900 meteorology
1900 natural disasters