in the mean time we in hong kong (the kids and young at heart) are relishing climate-change as unusual hail storm batter down, smashing windows and denting very expensive cars, and team new zealand enjoying same during victory at the 7s rugby match
scmp.com
Giant hailstones batter Hong Kong as Observatory warns of more storms to come
Giant hailstones pounded parts of Hong Kong last night as thunderstorms echoed around the city and the Black Rainstorm warning was issued for just the second time in two years.
Hailstones the size of golfballs were reported as festivities to mark the end of the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens were washed out.
This morning the Observatory warned that there was more bad weather and flooding to come, as the Amber Rainstorm warning was hoisted at 8.40am, with more than 30 millimetres of rain expected to fall in an hour.
Last night thunderstorms were accompanied by near constant flashes of lightning as the Observatory stated that more than 70 millimetres of rain had fallen in some parts in less than an hour.
 Rain pours through shattered windows at the Festival Walk shopping mall in Kowloon Tong during the storm. Photo: SCMP Pictures
The Observatory calculated that lightning had struck a total of 2,041 times in just one hour from 9pm, including 482 hits on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon.
Windows at the Festival Walk shopping mall in Kowloon Tong were smashed by the hail, causing widespread flooding inside the centre, with shoppers up to their ankles in water.
One video (see below) showed a huge piece of ceiling crash to the floor, narrowly missing a shopkeeper.
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 Staff mop the floor in Kowloon Tong's Festival Walk after a piece of ceiling fell to the floor. Photo: Thomas Yau
A stack of more than 20 cargo containers collapsed at the container terminal in Kwai Chung.
Flooding was reported in areas including Cheung Chau, Tuen Mun, Mong Kok and Sheung Shui, while a landslide was reported in Sai Kung.
MTR stations at Kowloon Tong and Wong Tai Sin also reported flooding.
 A stack of more than 20 cargo containers collapsed at the container terminal in Kwai Chung.
Flights were disrupted, with 65 departures delayed and 61 arrivals delayed, while nine inbound flights were diverted to other airports in China and Macau.
Paul Kwok, who was having dinner in Tseun Wan when the storm hit said: "It was like the end of the world out there for a while.
"Hail was raining down causing people to run for shelter. It stopped after about 10 minutes."
The Observatory said gusts of wind up to 100kmh had been recorded.
Two people were hospitalised with storm-related injuries, the Hospital Authority said. One was a truck driver hurt when a row of cargo containers toppled onto his lorry.
Sandy Song Man-kuen, a senior scientific officer at the Observatory, said the bad weather was due to a trough of low pressure that brought thunderstorms, hail and rain to coastal areas of Guangdong.
The last Black Rainstorm warning was issued in May 2013.
 A lorry is crushed beneath containers at Kwai Chung.The bad weather came a day after the first big storms of the year soaked crowds at the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens.
Black clouds darkened the stadium before lunchtime Saturday, forcing organisers to switch on floodlights and leading to sodden conditions.
The Observatory said earlier this month that up to seven typhoons were expected to hit the city this year.
 Team New Zealand celebrate their win at Cup Final match vs. Team England at the Final day of the Cathay Pacific/ HSBC Hong Kong Rugby Sevens 2014 under the freak hailstorm. Photo: Felix Wong
It added that as climate change progresses, Hong Kong would see more extreme weather in the future.
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