At least one person has died and more than a hundred have been injured as a result of the heavy rains and floods that it has suffered since Thursday night Hong Kongwhere some areas recorded levels of more than 600 mm of water per hour, the equivalent of a quarter of the annual rainfall in the former colony.
The city authorities have offered a press conference today to assess the situation and the damage caused by a storm “that occurs once every 500 years”, according to the chief secretary of Hong Kong, Eric Chan.
The number two of the Hong Kong Administration has assured that the storm “was so strong and sudden that we could not act and issue early warnings as we did with Super Typhoon Saola” and has warned that these extreme weather conditions will continue until this morning.
You can read: Nine people die in a gas leak accident in north China
For his part, the director of the Meteorological Observatory, Lee Lap, He has highlighted that the 600 mm of water per hour registered in various areas of the island is equivalent to approximately a quarter of the annual rainfall that this territory receives.
🇭🇰 | URGENT: Hong Kong suspends classes at all educational levels throughout its territory due to the extreme flooding suffered.
They ask people to stay home. They are the most intense rains since at least 1884. pic.twitter.com/7PCvLGMS38
– World Alert (@ AlertaMundial2) September 8, 2023
“Very extreme” situation
According to the health authorities, more than a hundred people have been treated in hospitals for injuries suffered during the storm, four of them seriously due to falls and traffic accidents.
Also read: China would ban its government officials from using iPhones during work
On the serious water levels accumulated in the city, the acting director of drainage services, Chui Si-kay, He defended that the system worked normally and is designed to resist very intense storms, although he specified that the situation on Thursday night was “very extreme.”
The rains, considered the greatest that have been recorded for 140 years, caused the suspension of all school activities during this day and the imposition of the working conditions set forth in typhoon signal number 8, which establishes the priority of the staff safety.
The storm, which continued on Friday morning, also forced the closure of the Heung Yuen Wai and Man Kam To border checkpoints, as well as the local immigration offices, all public medical centers and post offices.
The operator of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, HKEX, also suspended trading this Friday, as it did on September 1 due to the arrival of super typhoon Saola.
You can also read:
#Hong #Kong #suffers #floods #heavy #rains #incredible #images