The blackened skies unleashed the torrential rains in Hong Kong and the high -tech cities that surround the Delta of the Pearl River in southern China on Tuesday, closing hospitals, schools and court courts, and turning the many stairs of the Asian financial center in cascades.
Around 10,000 lightning illuminated Hong Kong’s heavens between 6 am (3 am pkt) and 6:59 am, according to the city’s weather authorities, since up to 90 millimeters of rain per hour continued to soak the city and the neighboring province of Guangdong.
The videos showed water torrents in the steep slopes in the old British colony, breaking in white water currents while running the stairs that link the urban landscape of several levels of Hong Kong. The flood led the weather office to extend its highest “black” storm warning until 3 pm
The water had increased to the height of the ankles on the outskirts of the largest hospital in Hong Kong, since the medical authorities announced that they would close clinics throughout the city due to the downpour.
Extreme rain and catastrophic floods, which meteorologists are linked to climate change, pose increasing challenges for officials in continental China, dragging people to death, moving thousands and threatening billions of dollars in economic losses.
The storms follow mortal sudden floods in southern China during the weekend, which left five dead in the province of Guangdong and caused a large -scale search operation that involved more than 1,300 rescuers.
Until Tuesday morning, four rivers in the province had risen at such a height that they ran the risk of exploding their banks, China’s state station CCTV reported.
Hong Kong, province of Guangdong and Macao, who issued a warning of red rain, form the backbone of the flagship initiative of the Bay area of Chinese President Xi Jinping, aimed at merging Hong Kong’s financial power with the manufacture and technological force of Guangdong.
Airports throughout the region reported cancellation rates of around 20 percent on Tuesday, according to FlightMaster data, while speed limits on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai Macau bridge, an flagship infrastructure project of GBA flagship, were reduced due to poor visibility.
Hong Kong airport has maintained normal operations at all times, but said that some flights had been delayed and passengers were advised to go to the airport only after their flight time was confirmed.
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange remains open, after having changed its policy to continue negotiating the weather at the end of last year, but the Judiciary announced that the courts, courts and registration offices would remain closed up to at least two hours after the ‘black’ rain storm alert was canceled.
“The persistent rain storm will cause serious road floods and traffic congestion. The members of the public are advised to take refuge in a safe place,” said the Hong Kong Observatory in a newsletter on its website.
Hong Kong generally receives an annual average of 2,200 mm of rain, more than half of which generally falls from June to August.
But not everything is pessimism.
Hong Kong Disneyland announced that he remains open, and his newspaper “Friendste! Parade” is still scheduled to take place later today, according to the park’s website.
