Torrential Rain Batters Hong Kong, Flooding the Waterlogged City
Even for Hong Kong, a city accustomed to seasonal typhoons, the record-breaking deluge has pushed it to its limits, straining city services and testing the patience and wits of its residents.
On Tuesday morning, the authorities issued their highest rain alert for the fourth time in eight days. The 'black rainstorm warning' means an expectation of 70 millimeters, or about 2.8 inches, or more of rainfall in one hour. On Tuesday, Hong Kong had recorded 14 inches of rain by midafternoon, the highest daily amount for August since annual records began in 1884.
Previously, the city had issued no more than three 'black' alerts across an entire year, said the Hong Kong Observatory, which issues the city's weather forecasts. 'You are advised to take shelter in a safe place and stay there,' it warned.
Many people in Hong Kong break out their umbrellas and rain boots and go about their business in heavy rain. This time, the successive days of downpours have soaked the ground and filled drains to overflowing, creating unusual disruption and danger. City workers waded into waist-high water that had accumulated on parking lots, looking for drains to unplug.
'It rains a lot more in the past two years,' said Luz Viado, a 78-year-old restaurant kitchen worker who has been living in Hong Kong since the 1970s. 'But I still have to work today.'
Much of urban Hong Kong is built on or near steep hillsides, and the government reported at least a dozen landslides across the city. No deaths or injuries have been reported.
The city canceled school classes and allowed most office workers to work from home on Tuesday. Courts postponed hearings. The Hong Kong International Airport reported that more than 100 flights were delayed. Three dozen passengers and two bus drivers were rescued from two buses that were stranded in floodwaters in Hong Kong's northeastern Tseung Kwan O area on Monday evening.
The city observatory forecast more heavy showers on Wednesday.
Over the past week, other parts of East Asia have also been whipped by strong downpours. In Taiwan, at least five people died and three were missing after torrential rains, especially in the south of the island. Last week, heavy rains and flooding in and around Beijing killed dozens of people.
Amy Chang Chien in Taipei contributed reporting.
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