Hong Kong issues 2 black rainstorm warnings in 1 day as downpours hit city

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong issued the black rainstorm warning twice within a single day, as downpours flooded the New Territories, disrupted flights and forced class suspensions on Thursday. The Observatory downgraded the day’s second black rainstorm warning, the highest of a three-tier system, to red at 8.30pm during an active southerly airstream over coastal Guangdong. The amber signal was later issued at 9.05pm before it was cancelled at 10.25pm. It was the third time the forecaster had issued the top-level warning within a month. The first this year was on June 8 and lasted about an hour. Thursday’s second black rainstorm signal was accompanied by a hail warning. The downpours during the day forced the temporary closure of the Man Kam To border control point for more than 3 hours, with Shenzhen authorities suspending passenger and cargo clearance services after some facilities had been flooded. The port resumed operations at 8 pm. The Drainage Services Department said 19 locations had been inundated across the New Territories throughout the day, including Fan Kam Road, Lau Fau Shan, Sheung Shui and parts of Yuen Long, All 19 cases were later cleared, with emergency teams deploying drainage robots, known as “water-pumping dragons”, in Tuen Mun, San Tin and 17 other sites to speed up operations. The department activated its emergency control centre at 12.10pm and deployed more than 200 emergency response teams, with the northern New Territories and Tuen Mun among the hardest-hit areas. Videos circulating on social media show buses and private vehicles stranded in Kam Tin, Yuen Long and Sheung Shui, while farmland near Sheung Shui was inundated. In one clip near a construction site, a man is seen wading through waist-deep water after getting out of a black private car with its rear window open. Water levels in a large nullah in Yuen Long rose so quickly that they nearly reached road level. Yuen Long resident Sunny Ng complained about the heavy rain. “It’s outrageous. My whole house is covered in mould,” he said. “It ruined all activities.” Homemaker Jessica Lam picked up her daughter early from school due to the black rainstorm warning and cancelled a planned company visit. She said she would still proceed with her trip to Macau starting Thursday night for the coming long holiday. “Rainfall is very hard to predict. The amber rainstorm warning has little impact on people’s daily lives,” she said. “For a black rainstorm warning, it would be best to give at least one hour’s notice so people can arrange to pick up their children from school.” According to the Airport Authority’s website, at least five inbound flights have been diverted to nearby airports, with Air China flight 101 from Beijing being diverted to Guangzhou and Loong Airlines flight 8007 from Hangzhou to Haikou. At least two inbound flights have been marked as delayed, including HK Express flight 131 from Kaohsiung and Cathay Pacific Airways flight 937 from Wuhan. At least three departing flights were listed as delayed, including Air China flights 102 and 112 to Beijing, and China Eastern Airlines flight 508 to Shanghai. Afternoon and night classes were also disrupted. “Students attending afternoon-session schools do not need to go to school today. Schools should keep their premises open and implement contingency measures to look after students who arrive,” the Education Bureau said. It added that schools already in session should continue until the end of the school day and ensure conditions were safe before allowing students to return home. Despite the weather, some students were unfazed. “Since it’s already exam period, we were returning home early anyway, so the black rainstorm warning did not really affect us,” said Hailey Hui, a Form Two student from a Quarry Bay school who went shopping in Causeway Bay with friends after her exam. Some MTR exits were closed at one stage as a precaution against flooding due to adverse weather, including A2 at Sham Shui Po, A1 at Choi Hung, B3 at Wong Tai Sin and A at Quarry Bay. Citybus adjusted services on several routes, including enhancing Route B7 between the Heung Yuen Wai border crossing and Fanling MTR station, following the suspension of minibus services. It also suspended four routes and adjusted operating hours for another four. KMB suspended its tour routes and temporarily diverted several others due to serious flooding in multiple locations in the North district, including routes 76K, 77K and 79K. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, meanwhile, urged the public to avoid visiting country parks. Those already in country parks should, depending on conditions, leave immediately or seek shelter in a safe place, it said. The Social Welfare Department said that all child care centres, Neighbourhood Support Child Care Project services, after-school care programmes for pre-primary and primary schoolchildren, elderly service centres and day rehabilitation units would remain open during normal operating hours to provide care. The forecaster said sunny intervals were likely to return on Friday afternoon despite strong winds and a few showers, before conditions turned very hot early next week. “The weather will be very hot and generally fine over southern China from early to midweek next week,” the Observatory said. “A southerly airstream is expected to bring a few showers to the coast of Guangdong later in the week.” Friday marks the Tuen Ng Festival, also known as the Dragon Boat Festival, giving residents a three-day weekend through Sunday. Additional reporting by Kate Chan and Edith Lin