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Commuters on Monday faced flooded roads once again, after a record-breaking downpour last week. Photo: Sam Tsang

Hong Kong rainstorm aftermath: downpours flood 8 areas but roads reopen later as residents return to work, school after record deluge last week

  • Drainage Services Department sent 15 teams to deal with flooding in Tseung Kwan O and Sai Kung, acting director says
  • More than 100mm of rain recorded in Sai Kung in one hour
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Heavy downpours caused flooding at eight locations in Sai Kung, Tseung Kwan O and Kwun Tong on Monday morning but all roads had reopened by the afternoon, Hong Kong authorities said, as commuters across the city returned to work and school after a record-breaking rainstorm last week.

The Drainage Services Department sent 15 teams to deal with flooding in Tseung Kwan O and Sai Kung, with water one metre (3.2 feet) deep in some areas, acting director Chui Si-kay said.

“The main reason for flooding incidents this time was the heavy rain, which washed fallen leaves and rubbish into drains, leading to obstructions and water accumulation in local areas,” Chui said, noting rainfall in Tseung Kwan O had exceeded 70mm (2.8 inches) an hour.

The eight locations affected were To Lok Road, Po Lam Road, Po Lam Road North, Kowloon-bound Tseung Kwan O Road, Ho Chung Road, Ho Chung New Village, Clear Water Bay Road and Hoi Yuen Road, Chui said.

02:38

Hong Kong farmer faces uncertain future after losing pigs to record rainfall

Hong Kong farmer faces uncertain future after losing pigs to record rainfall

The Observatory said it recorded more than 100mm of rain in Sai Kung between 8.50am and 9.50am, warning it would be particularly heavy there and at Tap Mun (Grass Island) in Tai Po district.

More than 80mm of hourly rainfall was also recorded in Sha Tin. The forecaster warned the downpours could cause flash floods and urged residents to stay away from the shoreline.

All lanes of the Yau Tong-bound Kwun Tong Road underpass were earlier closed to traffic due to surface water, as well as those on Tseung Kwan O Road near Tsui Ping South Estate, the Transport Department said. The roads later reopened.

The Kwun Tong section of Tsui Ping Road was also affected, making it hard for traffic to get through.

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Online photos and footage from Tsui Lam Estate in Tseung Kwan O showed waterfall-like streams gushing down a hill to a public area near Choi Lam House. Many parts of the estate were flooded and residents and staff were busy removing the water.

Police received several reports of stranded vehicles as roads flooded in the morning. In one case, rainwater gushed into a van near Ma Yau Tong village, located between Po Lam and Lam Tin, trapping the driver and passengers inside. No one was injured, the force said.

Also at the village, the force received reports of mud entering a home and another of water seeping into a house after a landslide and flooding. A one-by-10-metre (3.2-by-32-foot) wall next to a home collapsed. No injuries were reported.

The village chief Tsang Chi-shing said he received calls from locals at around 8am about flooding and landslides. Only part of the village was affected, he said.

Many commuters say they left home early to make sure they could reach work on time. Photo: Elson Li

“The water was around two feet deep … affecting around eight to 10 families,” Tsang said.

He said he was surprised to see the flooding as government workers had cleared village drains before last week’s storm and there had been no problems. Tsang said branches and leaves washed downhill could have blocked the drains, causing the flooding.

In flood-hit Po Lam and Kwun Tong, the water had receded by the end of the work day, although a few muddy puddles remained along with some tree branches. Evening peak hour traffic in Kwun Tong moved smoothly.

IT worker Berry Lai, 34, questioned if enough emergency protocols were in place to prevent such floods from happening again.

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“Kwun Tong is already very congested even on a normal working day. If this repeats, how are we supposed to get to work?” she said, adding she had to wade through shin-high water to get to her office in the morning.

The Education Bureau said five schools would be unable to resume in-person classes on Tuesday because of damage to campuses and their surroundings. It received about 140 reports of damage to campuses as of noon and had carried out basic repairs on all of them.

In other districts, commuters made their way to school and work with few disruptions, after Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki on Sunday reassured the public the city had largely returned to normality after last week’s deluge, which triggered a black rainstorm warning for more than 16 hours.

The MTR Corporation on Sunday asked passengers to avoid using Wong Tai Sin station, where many facilities remained damaged from severe flooding.

Residents in Shek O line up to take the first bus to Shau Kei Wan. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

The rail giant said only one lift had been fixed and was in working condition, while escalators were not operating.

It added recovery would take time, urging people to allocate extra minutes for their commute if they decided to use the station. Passengers were instead advised to opt for Lok Fu or Diamond Hill stations for the Kwun Tong line.

Passenger flow at the station in the morning rush hour was largely smooth, with commuters exiting and entering trains as normal. Staff were deployed at almost every platform screen door to help commuters.

Commuters said they were able to catch their trains as they had made plans to arrive early. Ming Tam, a 50-year-old Wong Tai Sin resident heading to work in Sha Tin, said he left home 10 minutes earlier than usual.

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Tam’s concerns were shared by civil servant Chan Wai-yee, 27, who left for work in Kwai Hing 15 minutes early.

“I made some preparations earlier and also checked if the service here would be suspended again,” she said, adding that she was prepared to take a bus in the event of any disruptions.

Over in Shek O, residents said they had experienced no issues leaving the rural area of Hong Kong Island.

Shek O was earlier left isolated after landslides triggered by the rainstorm damaged its only access road to the city. One road lane reopened over the weekend, but only light vehicles or single-decker buses were allowed to pass.

Some passengers say they were caught off guard by the suspension of lift and escalator services to the platform. Photo: Elson Li

Lam Tam, a 40-year-old buyer in the luxury goods industry, said she ensured she had extra travel time to work by taking the bus to Shau Kei Wan 20 minutes earlier than usual, adding the ride was smooth and took the normal 20 minutes.

Secretary for Transport and Logistics Lam Sai-hung on Monday said sections of five out of six roads that were closed the day before because of landslides or subsidence had reopened with at least one lane operating.

Parts of Yiu Hing Road in Shau Kei Wan remain closed. Stubbs Road in Mid-Levels, Wong Ma Kok Road in Stanley, Mount Nicholson Road on The Peak, Ping Chi Street in Hung Hom and Lin Shing Road in Chai Wan have reopened.

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Lam told a radio show the landslide on Yiu Hing Road was serious and covered a wide area, with authorities working on proposals to expedite the restoration process.

The landslide sent giant boulders raining down and completely covered a 50-metre section of road with mud and rocks.

Last Thursday, a record black rainstorm alert issued at 11.05pm lasted for more than 16 hours, with the city reporting the heaviest hourly rainfall ever.

The Observatory headquarters logged 158.1mm of rain between 11pm and midnight, the most since records began in 1884.

The aftermath of a landslide on Yiu Hing Road. Photo: Sam Tsang

The downpour brought the city to a standstill as streets were turned into rivers, drivers were left stranded in cars, restaurants and railway stations flooded and landslides struck near residential estates. More than 100 people were sent to hospital.

Meanwhile, at Salesian School in Shau Kei Wan, staff and volunteers were busy cleaning up the campus following last week’s rainstorm, with lessons forced to go online.

The primary school and connecting secondary, Salesian English School, were both heavily affected by floodwater which damaged equipment and books.

“The Education Bureau has come down to look at the situation and they could see that the damage was serious, so we cannot calculate our losses now,” said the primary school’s principal, Karen Chan Yuen-lee.

Additional reporting by Elizabeth Cheung and Jeffie Lam

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