Tropical Storm Nangka did require No 8 signal, Hong Kong Observatory says
- Predicted heavy rains did not batter the city when Tropical Storm Nangka skirted the city on Tuesday
- But decision to raise the warning level endorsed by two other veteran meteorologists
The Hong Kong Observatory has defended its decision to raise the No 8 signal when Tropical Storm Nangka skirted the city on Tuesday, saying strong winds could have intensified.
Some members of the public pointed to only minimal rain and wind in parts of the city, but the decision to raise the warning level was endorsed by two other veteran meteorologists.
“We originally forecast the winds would blow to the south of Hong Kong, but later [the storm] got too close, and even a slight deviation from our forecasting could have caused more residents to be affected,” said Chan Pak-wai, the Observatory’s assistant director of forecasting and warning systems.
“So after taking into account the rainfall and wind speeds across the city, we decided to raise the No 8 signal as a safety precaution.”
The signal was raised at 5.40am and lowered to No 3 at 7.40pm.
The Observatory had originally expected heavy rains to hit the city, but local dry air might have caused the moisture to evaporate as it arrived, according to Chan.