Hong Kong Observatory verifying reports of hail

The Observatory is verifying social media posts which said that hail fell in Hong Kong as the city was hit with multiple amber rainstorm warnings late on Tuesday and into Wednesday morning, which also brought heavy lightning storms and winds to the SAR. During an amber warning issued at about 9.30pm on Tuesday, posts from several social media platforms reported that Yuen Long was hit by hail. One video on Instagram showed residents there running for cover. The Observatory said it is verifying the reports of hail, and noted that Macau and Zhuhai also reported that hail had fallen. The forecaster also said lightning struck the east of the territory more than 6,400 times between 10pm and 10am. “Violent gusts” of over 100km per hour were also recorded in Cheung Chau early on Wednesday morning. Meanwhile, a concert that was being held in Central was forced to stop midway when the amber signal came into effect on Tuesday night. And several flights were affected by the weather, with some being delayed or rerouted to land in other airports in the Pearl River Delta area.