From Haikui to Doksuri, Hong Kong must expect the unexpected in a new era of extreme weather

The city sustained widespread flooding from a typhoon that was expected to be weaker than one it weathered just a few days earlier

Recent storms in China and elsewhere show the need to be prepared for the unprecedented

3-MIN READ3-MIN

Hong Kong has to prepare for a new age of extreme weather. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Josephine Ma

Josephine Ma is China news editor and has covered China news for the Post for more than 20 years.

Published: 7:22pm, 12 Sep 2023

Hong Kong was caught by surprise last week when it was hit by the worst rainstorm in 140 years.

Just days earlier, the city had sighed in relief at weathering Saola, the strongest typhoon to hit the area in five years.

But record rainfall brought by the supposedly weaker typhoon Haikui wreaked havoc and brought the metropolis of 7.4 million people to a halt. In its wake, two people were killed, streets were turned into raging rivers and shopping malls, subway stations and car parks were inundated.

Just across the border, the mainland tech hub of Shenzhen, home to 17.7 million people, was also grappling with widespread flooding – so much so that the city had to release water from its reservoir early on Friday.

While the worst of the storm may have passed, Haikui’s impact lingers. A week after the typhoon made a landfall in Fujian province, southern China is still drenched by its slow-moving storm clouds.

In the autonomous region of Guangxi, people continue to battle flooding and landslides, which have claimed at least seven lives.