A Chinese navy ship stationed in Hong Kong ran aground in the waters off an island after typhoon Mangkhut tore through the city on Sunday.

Nan Jiao 86, which has been in the People’s Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison for years, has been stranded on Kau Yi Chau since.

Photos taken by Apple Daily showed officers checking the ship on the deck and from the island. Clear damage can be seen on the vessel.

Kau Yi Chau Nanjiao 86
Nanjiao 86 stranded near Kau Yi Chau.

It was secured by several cables to prevent it from being pushed into the sea by waves.

Unidentified sources told the newspaper that the ship is usually docked at the military pier in Stonecutters Island, but military ships must be moved from the pier during a typhoon and anchored in predetermined locations using steel cables.

The sources said that, at around noon on Sunday – whilst the No. 10 signal was raised – Nanjiao 86’s steel cables were broken and the vessel was carried by the wind to a rocky beach on the Eastern side of Kau Yi Chau.

More than 120 yachts were damaged in Sai Kung after the typhoon.

Tumberry yacht Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Public Golf Course stranded
A Tumberry yacht stranded near the carpark of the Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Public Golf Course. Photo: Handout.

In one case, a yacht – worth more than HK$10 million – was stranded near the carpark of the Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Public Golf Course.

Jacky Cheung Yat-leung, founding president of the Sai Kung Yacht Association, estimated that boat owners in the Sai Kung area suffered a total of HK$100 million in losses.

He said common insurance conditions require that yachts be moored inside typhoon shelters within two hours after the No.3 warning signal is raised. Cheung said he was concerned that insurance companies may not cover the losses.

He suggested building more typhoon shelters near Sai Kung, saying he has made the same suggestion for years to no avail.

Kris Cheng is a Hong Kong journalist with an interest in local politics. His work has been featured in Washington Post, Public Radio International, Hong Kong Economic Times and others. He has a BSSc in Sociology from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Kris is HKFP's Editorial Director.