In Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter, Hong Kong’s past and present meet: photo essay

The first of 14 built around Hong Kong’s shores, the Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter, long home to a community of boat dwellers, is testament to change in the city

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Light is reflected off the water at the Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter, the oldest in Hong Kong. Photo: Antony Dickson

Published: 7:45am, 6 Jan 2024Updated: 2:03pm, 12 Feb 2024

Typhoon shelters have been fixtures of Hong Kong since the late 19th century. Every day, many Hongkongers will walk past one of the 14 structures dotted around the city’s coastline. Most will not give them a second thought.

But, as with much else in the city, all these typhoon shelters have gone through many changes. Historical, natural and cultural developments have rendered them largely idiosyncratic.

Of the four typhoon shelters along the coast of Hong Kong Island, it is Causeway Bay’s that most reflects the coexistence of the city’s bygone era and modernity.

In the most basic sense, typhoon shelters are reminders of the city’s fishing past. This is where fishing boats have moored to find refuge against inclement weather.

The floating Tin Hau temple (centre, foreground) in the Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter against the backdrop of Kowloon (rear) and Tin Hau (right) on the north shore of Hong Kong Island. Photo: Antony Dickson

A man washes himself at the Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter. Photo: Antony Dickson

A boat woman goes about her daily duties at the Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter. Luxury yachts are moored in the background. Photo: Antony Dickson