Greater than 350mm (13.8 inches) of rain was recorded – the best every day rainfall for August in over 140 years.
Hong Kong has been hit with record-breaking rains which have seen colleges and courts shuttered, hospitals disrupted, and roads badly flooded.
Greater than 350mm (13.8 inches) of rain had drenched the territory by 2pm (06:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the town’s climate authorities mentioned – the best every day rainfall for August since 1884.
The storms comply with lethal flash floods in Southern China over the weekend, which left 5 useless in Guangdong province and prompted a large-scale search operation involving greater than 1,300 rescuers.
Movies confirmed water cascading down steep hillsides, breaking into whitewater streams as they rushed down the numerous staircases linking Hong Kong’s multitiered cityscape.
Climate authorities prolonged their highest “black” rainstorm warning till 5pm native time (09:00 GMT).
This was the fourth such warning issued in simply eight days, breaking the document for essentially the most frequent issuance of the town’s highest climate alert inside a single yr, in accordance with China’s state information company Xinhua.
Greater than 9,600 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes had been recorded between 5am (21:00 GMT) and midday, Hong Kong’s climate observatory mentioned.
The water had risen to ankle peak exterior Hong Kong’s largest hospital, as medical authorities introduced they might be closing clinics throughout the town as a result of downpour. In the meantime, automobiles had been reported submerged in water.
The climate service warned on Tuesday afternoon {that a} “persistent rainstorm will trigger critical highway flooding and site visitors congestion”.
Town’s Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan urged the general public to remain alert and mentioned employers ought to take into account versatile working preparations that prioritise worker security.
Airports throughout the area reported cancellation charges of round 20 p.c on Tuesday, in accordance with information from Flightmaster, whereas velocity limits had been lowered on account of poor visibility.
Excessive rainfall and catastrophic flooding, which meteorologists hyperlink to local weather change, pose mounting challenges for each Hong Kong and mainland China. Along with the deaths and accidents, such floods can displace 1000’s and threaten billions of {dollars} in financial losses.
Hong Kong usually receives an annual common of two,200mm (86.6 inches) of rainfall, greater than half of which normally falls from June by August.
