Old footage of gusts blowing over pedestrians falsely linked to arrival of Typhoon Yagi
- Published on September 13, 2024 at 10:38
- 5 min read
- By Chayanit ITTHIPONGMAETEE, Hailey JO, AFP Thailand
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"#TyphoonYagi Very terrifying. Pedestrians were knocked down," read the Thai-language caption to a video shared on X on September 7, 2024.
The video comprises two clips appearing to show people being blown over during strong storms.
The same two clips were shared elsewhere on X here, as well as in Vietnamese, English, Spanish, Korean and French posts that used them as part of a longer compilation.
They circulated as Typhoon Yagi struck southern China, Vietnam and the Philippines in early September 2024 (archived link).
The typhoon -- one of the strongest to hit the region in decades -- left a trail of destruction in its wake; more than 250 people were killed and millions contended with flooded homes, power cuts and wrecked infrastructure (archived link).
Heavy monsoon rains lash Southeast Asia every year, but human-made climate change is causing more intense weather patterns that can make destructive floods more likely. According to a study published in July, climate change is causing typhoons to form closer to the coast, intensify faster and stay longer over land.
The clips, however, are unrelated to Typhoon Yagi. They circulated following storms in southern and northeastern China, months before Typhoon Yagi struck.
Guangzhou tornado
Typhoon Yagi made landfall on southern China's Hainan island on September 6, with state media reporting that it brought winds of more than 230 kilometres (143 miles) per hour, uprooted trees and prompted the evacuation of around 460,000 people on the island (archived link).
Authorities also evacuated more than 574,000 residents to safety in neighbouring Guangdong.
But a reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the first clip shared on social media led to the same footage published by video agency Newsflare, which says it was filmed on April 26 (archived link).
The video is titled, "Guangdong storm: powerful winds knock down pedestrians".
Its description reads, "In a harrowing scene captured by @yiyayi on April 26, 2024, in Guangdong province, China, a severe storm battered the region with relentless force. The video depicted fierce winds and torrential rain making it nearly impossible for pedestrians to navigate the streets safely."
Below is a screenshot comparison between the clip used in the false X post (left) and the Newsflare video (right):
Screenshots of the clip were also used in a report about the storm by Hong Kong-based media outlet HK01 on April 28 (archived link).
Citing state media, AFP reported that at least five people were killed and 33 injured after a tornado struck Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong (archived link).
Shandong gusts
A reverse image search of the second clip shared on social media led to the same footage published on the verified Instagram account of the New York Post on July 5 (archived link).
The clip is captioned, "Watch the wild moment a mother and daughter were swept off their feet by intense winds in China."
Below is a screenshot comparison between the false X post (left) and the New York Post Instagram video (right):
The footage was also shared by the state-run People’s Daily on Facebook on July 2, in a post that said it was filmed in Shandong on June 30 (archived link).
CCTV footage of the same incident was published by Newsflare, which also said it was filmed during a storm in Shandong province's Dezhou City on June 30 (archived link).
The video's description on Newsflare reads: "A sudden gust of wind swept a mother and daughter off their feet, threatening to carry them away. A mall security guard braved the fierce winds and managed to pull them to safety."
A building visible in the background of the clip bears the name of the Pingyuan Chinese-English Experimental High School, a secondary school in Dezhou city's Pingyuan county (archived link).
Below is a screenshot comparison between the falsely shared clip (left) and the same location shown in a photo uploaded to Baidu Maps (right), with the school's name highlighted by AFP:
AFP has debunked other posts linking unrelated videos and photos to Typhoon Yagi here, here and here.
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