Swimming pool operators, scouts and hikers are among the groups who could benefit from an Observatory website that issues an alert if there has been lightning within 15km of a specified location in the past five minutes.
The Observatory's acting assistant director, Sharon Lau Sum-yee, said the current thunderstorm warning applied across the whole city but sometimes lightning would affect only isolated areas.
'The alert will be convenient for people who need to monitor the weather at outdoor activities,' she said. 'The warning could be given immediately for anyone with a portable device and who has access to the internet.'
She encouraged swimming pool operators to use the new website in order to prolong working hours.
'The [swimming pool] operator can decide when to close the swimming pool timelier with the new website,' she said.
At the moment swimming pools usually close when the Observatory issues a thunderstorm warning. But the lightning alert could allow them to monitor the risk to swimmers more accurately and stay open for longer if there is no danger of a strike in the area.