Hong Kong quickly returned to normal on Monday afternoon as Severe Tropical Storm Tapah moved away after triggering the No 8 typhoon signal for nearly 16 hours, with 140 flights cancelled, school classes suspended and many people on flexible work arrangements.

While the No 8 signal was in effect in the morning, HK Express flight UO235 was suspected to have hit signage boards at Hong Kong International Airport while taxiing on the north runway.

None of the 137 passengers and crew members on board were injured, but the Civil Aviation Department said it was deeply concerned about the case and was investigating.

Tapah – a Malay word for a type of giant freshwater catfish – hit Hong Kong within a short time frame, triggering the No 3 signal early on Sunday, which the Observatory upgraded to No 8 in the evening. By Monday afternoon, the forecaster had lowered the signal to No 3.

The storm caused less damage than Typhoon Wipha in July, with 12 people injured, 162 reports of fallen trees and three cases of flooding.

Many people started heading to work on Monday afternoon and found the Observatory’s typhoon warnings to be timely.