Hong Kong floods: 132 people sent to hospitals, Observatory cancels all warnings after city battered by heaviest rainfall on record
- Observatory cancelled all signals at 4.45pm, after downgrading the black warning to amber at 3.40pm
- Most rainfall recorded in an hour since records began in 1884; black rainstorm warning issued for first time since October 2021
More than 130 people were treated in hospital as Hong Kong’s heaviest downpour in decades sparked widespread flooding overnight and brought the city to a standstill by Friday morning with the stock exchange suspended and employers urged to let staff work under typhoon arrangements.
The city also marked its longest black rainstorm warning, with the highest-level alert in force for more than 12 hours by noon. The longest black rain warning previously was in 1999, which lasted five hours and 47 minutes.
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The Observatory cancelled all signals at 4.45pm, after downgrading the black warning at 3.40pm to amber, the lowest level in the three-tier system.
A total of 132 people, aged between eight years and 94, were treated in hospital, as of 5pm, including two men and two women in serious condition.
No 2 official Eric Chan Kwok-ki met the press at 2.30pm to outline details on efforts coordinated by the Security Bureau as the administration faced mounting pressure to explain the lack of warning.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has so far published two social media posts on the storm, which appealed to the public to stay safe.
But the posts were bombarded with criticism in the comments section as people questioned what was seen as a poor government response, a stark contrast to a week earlier when officials pulled out all the stops to protect the city against Super Typhoon Saola.
User Veronica Law wrote: “Not everyone was on Facebook. Why wasn’t even an SMS sent to residents in this kind of situation?” Another user, Emi An, asked: “Is the chief executive sleeping? Are you aware of the severe flooding out there?”
The MTR Corporation suspended services between Shek Kip Mei and Choi Hung because of flooding near the Wong Tai Sin section of the Kwun Tong line.
Trains from Choi Hung to Tiu Keng Leng will be maintained at 12-minute intervals and those from Whampoa to Shek Kip Mei will run every six minutes. The rail giant said it could not provide shuttle buses because of the weather.
The highest measurement of rainfall in an hour was reported since records began in 1884, with 158.1mm (6.2 inches) of rain recorded at the Observatory headquarters between 11pm and midnight on Thursday.
The black rainstorm alert was issued on Thursday night, the first since October 2021.
The torrential rain, which continued into Friday morning, also forced the closure of border control points at Heung Yuen Wai and Man Kam To, as well as services at city immigration offices, all public clinics and postal operations.
Videos shared on social media showed scenes of Hong Kong streets turning into rushing torrents and people caught up in flooding around the city. One clip showed a swamped underground railway station.
The black warning, signifying rain exceeding 70mm an hour has fallen or is expected to fall, was issued at 11.05pm on Thursday and replaced the red alert raised at 9.50pm. The amber warning, the lowest in the three-tier system, was issued just 25 minutes earlier.
The Observatory earlier said heavy rain was badly affecting the northern part of the New Territories, including Sheung Shui, Ta Kwu Ling and the Sha Tau Kok area.
The heavy rain had resulted in, and could continue to cause, significant road flooding and traffic congestion, it warned.
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The forecaster on Friday predicted intense rain and thunderstorms would continue to develop over the south of the Pearl River Delta in the morning and move towards Hong Kong under the influence of a trough of low pressure.
Long Win Bus and Citybus suspended all services, except airport routes S1, S64C and S64X, until further notice to ensure the safety of travellers and staff. KMB at 9am said it would resume limited services on some routes.
Kan Hok-hei, KMB head of corporate communications and public affairs, said in the morning that more than 20 buses were stuck on roads because of the heavy rain. The stranded vehicles were in various locations, including Lung Cheung Road, Sha Tau Kok Road and in Sha Tin, Kan added.
He added that the company aimed to provide more bus services by noon, when the weather was expected to improve.
The sudden downpours which started on Thursday night caused flash flooding across the city, with Eastern district on Hong Kong Island also among the worst-hit areas. In one incident, water gushed into a bus near Chai Wan Road.
The water was ankle-deep inside the double-decker, but the vehicle managed to navigate through the flooded roads without breaking down.
Roads in Causeway Bay and Tin Hau were also submerged and rainwater flooded a double-decker bus near Happy Valley.
Rain also streamed into the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, one of the main arteries between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon and forced vehicles to slow to a crawl as they navigated through the centimetres-deep water.
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In eastern Kowloon, Lung Cheung Road near Temple Mall in Wong Tai Sin also suffered severe flooding. An online clip showed a car being carried backwards by the flood for at least 10 metres (32 feet).
A man, believed to be the driver, was outside the vehicle trying to save it. He held onto the car with one hand and a lamp post with the other, slightly slowing down the vehicle’s movement.
The driver of another car opted to sit on the roof, sheltered by an umbrella, to seek safety from the floodwaters.
A woman in another clip gripped an umbrella as she struggled to stop herself from being swept away by muddy water roaring down a road. She was carried along by the flood for about 50 metres.
Parts of Wuhu Street and nearby Bulkeley Street in Hung Hom were flooded. Residents wading through water and vehicles crawled along as water inundated streets.
The MTR Corp announced at about 12.30am that stations between Whampoa and Kwun Tong were closed and passengers were told to leave for their own safety.
Rainwater flooded a platform at Wong Tai Sin station.
03:24
Record-breaking rain inundates Hong Kong, causing widespread flooding across the city
“The entire escalator is full of water … we are like sailing in a vessel,” a woman on board a train at the station said in a social media post, uploading a video clip showing the river-like platform.
“Even Wong Tai Sin can’t save you,” she joked, a reference to the temple god in the district.
Another online video clip showed serious flooding in Choi Hung station.
The rail operator said: “Recovery work [on the Kwun Tong line] will continue as far as practicable during non-traffic hours. [Friday’s] train service arrangements will be announced based on the progress of recovery.”
Earlier, at about 11pm on Thursday, the operator announced the temporary closure of some exits at Chai Wan and Sheung Shui MTR stations because of flooding on nearby roads. The concourse at Chan Wan station also experienced some flooding.
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It was the same story at some shopping centres, including a Wong Tai Sin mall where chairs were spotted floating in the water.
At a mall in Wan Tsui Estate in Chai Wan, the ground floor was filled with ankle-deep rainwater. A car park in the same estate was also flooded, with water rising to about half the height of a seven-seater vehicle.
A minibus was trapped during the downpour in Sheung Shui in the New Territories. Muddy floodwater streamed into the vehicle and forced passengers to raise their legs to avoid getting wet.
In the Sha Tau Kok area, near the border with mainland China, rainfall exceeding 150mm in two hours was recorded.
Sha Tau Kok Road was waterlogged, which forced vehicles to slow down. Residents reported being stranded on buses.
On Ting Kok Road in Tai Po, flooding near Tsim Uk village caused a 2km (1.2-mile) traffic jam on the Tai Mei Tuk-bound lane.
Vehicles could not move for at least two hours and several fire engines were forced to use the opposite Tai Po-bound lane.
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Some residents, including a Post reporter, tried to leave Tai Po for a hotel in Sha Tin, but found the Yuen Shin Road entrance to Tolo Harbour was blocked by flooding. Drivers had to circle around to Tai Wo to get onto the highway.
About 10 residents queued to check in at the Hyatt Regency hotel as they were unable to get home.
The government said at about 11.40am it had been told by Shenzhen authorities about a reservoir discharge, with residents near the Shenzhen, Ng Tung and Sheung Yu rivers on high alert.
North district councillor Hau Chi-keung said at 1am that several households in Tak Yuet Lau, next to the Shenzhen River and Ng Tung River, could be at high risk, but because of the flooded roads, authorities could not reach them.
The government said various departments, including the District Office (North), drainage services, police, fire services, water supplies and social welfare, had been informed about the water release plan and would take any necessary measures.
The District Office was also making arrangements to tell local residents about the appropriate actions to take.
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The Observatory said that, under the influence of a trough of low pressure associated with the remnants of Typhoon Haikui, there would be showers and thunderstorms over the coast of Guangdong in the next few days.
Sunny intervals are expected to return early next week.
Additional reporting by Elizabeth Cheung and Natalie Wong
