As Tropical Cyclone Rai nears, Hong Kong Observatory to weigh first December typhoon warning since 1974
- City’s weather forecaster says cyclone’s ‘intensity and track’ will determine if warning is needed, as Rai expected to come within 800km of city by Monday
- The last December typhoon warning came 47 years ago, when Super Typhoon Irma struck
The Hong Kong Observatory on Monday will decide whether to issue its first December typhoon warning in 47 years, as Tropical Cyclone Rai moves across the central part of the South China Sea.
According to the forecaster, Rai was located about 1,000km southwest of Hong Kong as of 2pm on Sunday and was expected to come within 800km of the city by Monday.
“Depending on the intensity and track of Rai, the Observatory will consider the necessity of issuing a tropical cyclone warning signal during the day [on Monday],” it said.
“Rain bands associated with Rai were expected to bring rainy weather to the northern part of the South China Sea and the coast of Guangdong [province] in the next couple of days.”
The last time the Observatory issued a No 1 typhoon warning signal in December was in 1974, when Super Typhoon Irma struck. The warning was in force for about 10 hours before being upgraded to a No 3, which remained in place for another 17 hours.
Due to Irma’s impact, the Observatory recorded 177.3mm of rain on December 2, 1974. It remains the rainiest December day on record.