INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Record-breaking rainfall paralyzed much of Hong Kong on Friday, with flash flooding submerging metro stations and trapping drivers on roads,
as authorities suspended schools and urged the public to seek safe shelter.Photos and videos showed residents wading through murky brown
floodwaters as heavy rain continued to inundate the densely populated city of 7.5 million
In some low-lying areas, streets were transformed into surging torrents, with authorities forced to rescue motorists stuck in their
vehicles.The deluge began late Thursday night, with the Hong Kong Observatory recording more than 158 millimeters (6.2 inches) in rain
and midnight, the highest hourly rainfall since records began in 1884, the government said in a news release.Some parts of city saw almost
500 mm (19.7 inches) of rainfall in 24 hours, according to online weather data site OGimet.The extreme conditions caught many residents by
surprise and came just days after Hong Kong was lashed by its strongest typhoon in five years.Typhoon Saola, originally a super typhoon,
city and cause hundreds of flight cancellations
disruptions across the financial hub, with the stock market canceling morning trading, and all schools closed for the day
On Friday, authorities appealed to businesses to allow non-essential employees to stay at home or seek safe shelter, citing unsafe travel
conditions.Stuart Hargreaves, a Hong Kong resident and professor, was forced to spend the night in his car after being stranded while
driving home late Thursday
he said.As of Friday afternoon, 119 people have been reported injured from the downpour, four of whom are in serious condition, according to
announced it would suspend services on one of its lines after a station in the Wong Tai Sin district was flooded, with footage shared widely
online showing floodwater gushing down the stairs
Another video shows workers at a different station up to their knees in water, struggling at the entrance to keep the flooding at bay.While
most other subway operations remained open, all major bus, tram and ferry services were suspended, according to public broadcaster RTHK
And although some bus services resumed Friday afternoon, many routes remain closed or diverted.Multiple roads were also closed off due to
two years.Videos from Thursday evening show floodwater entering the first floors of some buildings and shopping malls, with chairs and
which is adjacent to the Chinese mainland, after the neighboring city of Shenzhen said it would release water from a reservoir.The downpours
in Shenzhen also broke multiple rain records in the city, including the maximum rainfall records over two-hour, three-hour, six-hour and
12-hour periods, which have stood since 1952, according to Chinese state media.Shenzhen saw 469 millimeters (about 18.5 inches) of rain from
Friday, with kindergartens, primary and secondary schools shut on Friday, state media reported
Transport was disrupted there, too, with six subway lines suspended.Source - CNN--Agencies
