A photo taken when Typhoon Yagi hit southern China in September was edited and shared with the false claim that underwear was flying in the wind as another cyclone, Krathon, hit Taiwan in October. The original photo – which did not show the air underwear – was taken on the Chinese island of Hainan.
“Flying Underpants in Kaohsiung,” read a Threads post shared on October 3, 2024.
The post was shared after Typhoon Krathon ripped through Taiwan on October 3, bringing mudslides, flooding and destructive winds to the island, killing at least four people and forcing the evacuation of thousands (archived link).
Taiwan is used to frequent tropical storms from July to October, but scientists have warned that climate change is becoming increasingly severe, bringing heavy rains, flash floods and strong winds.
The image was also shared with similar false claims elsewhere on Threads and Facebook, and featured in reports published by Taiwanese media outlets including SET News, Mirror Media and Up Media.
But the photo was changed and was taken when another typhoon hit southern China a month ago.
Changed image
A reverse image and keyword search found a photo in AFP’s archives that was published by China’s state news agency Xinhua in September 2024 when Typhoon Yagi hit the country (archived link).
The caption read: “Coconut trees struggle with strong winds on a street in Haikou, south China’s Hainan province, September 6, 2024.”
The original image published by Xinhua did not show the air underwear seen in the modified image.
Below is a screenshot comparison of the image in the fake message (left) and the Xinhua photo (right):
A sign on the building seen in the Xinhua photo also identified it as “The Top”, a residential tower located at Guoxing Avenue 22 in Haikou City on Hainan Island, according to the developer’s website (archived link) .
The building is also featured on Baidu Map and in a video uploaded in May 2023 to a YouTube channel that publishes street images in China (archived links here and here).
Below is a screenshot comparison of the Xinhua photo used in the fake post (left) and the same location seen on the YouTube channel (right), with the same tower block flagged by AFP:
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said Yagi brought winds of more than 230 kilometers per hour, uprooting trees and forcing the evacuation of about 460,000 people.
At least four people were killed and 95 injured in southern China after the storm hit Hainan and Guangdong provinces, CCTV said on September 7, citing local authorities (archived link).
