1881- Haiphong Typhoon

The Gulf of Tonkin is a body of water between Vietnam, the Chinese Island of Hainan, and Mainland China. It provides one of the most frequently used paths for Pacific typhoons originating near the Philippines to strike the Asian mainland. On October 8, 1881, a monstrous typhoon traveled through the Gulf of Tonkin and devastated Haiphong, Vietnam and the surrounding coastal area. Some 300,000 people lost their lives as the typhoon’s storm surge flooded the low-lying city. Today, the disaster still ranks today among the greatest losses of life from any tropical cyclone worldwide.