Hong Kong floods: 132 people sent to hospitals, Observatory cancels all warnings after city battered by heaviest rainfall on record
- Observatory cancelled all signals at 4.45pm, after downgrading the black warning to amber at 3.40pm
- Most rainfall recorded in an hour since records began in 1884; black rainstorm warning issued for first time since October 2021
More than 130 people were treated in hospital as Hong Kong’s heaviest downpour in decades sparked widespread flooding overnight and brought the city to a standstill by Friday morning with the stock exchange suspended and employers urged to let staff work under typhoon arrangements.
The city also marked its longest black rainstorm warning, with the highest-level alert in force for more than 12 hours by noon. The longest black rain warning previously was in 1999, which lasted five hours and 47 minutes.
The Observatory cancelled all signals at 4.45pm, after downgrading the black warning at 3.40pm to amber, the lowest level in the three-tier system.
A total of 132 people, aged between eight years and 94, were treated in hospital, as of 5pm, including two men and two women in serious condition.
No 2 official Eric Chan Kwok-ki met the press at 2.30pm to outline details on efforts coordinated by the Security Bureau as the administration faced mounting pressure to explain the lack of warning.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has so far published two social media posts on the storm, which appealed to the public to stay safe.