Hong Kong hiker dies as soaring temperatures make Sunday hottest day in May on record
- City swelters as mercury tops 36 degrees Celsius, dwarfing previous high set in 1963
- Man collapses on hike from Tai Po, pronounced dead after being airlifted to Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital
A hiker died as the persistent heatwave hitting Hong Kong reached its peak on Sunday afternoon when temperatures rose above 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 degrees Fahrenheit), making it the hottest day in May on record.
The Observatory recorded a temperature of 36.1 degrees at about 2pm at its Tsim Sha Tsui headquarters, the highest May temperature since records began in 1884, dwarfing the previous high of 35.5 degrees in 1963.
The reading also marked the third-highest daily maximum for any month on record – after 36.6 degrees recorded in 2017 and 36.3 degrees in 2015 – matching a high of 36.1 degrees recorded in 1900 and 1990.
The temperature soared higher still in Tai Mei Tuk in Tai Po, which hit 37.1 degrees at about 1pm.
Other city hotspots included Yuen Long Park (36.1 degrees), Ta Kwu Ling (35.6 degrees), Sham Shui Po (35.8 degrees) and Tuen Mun (35 degrees).
