Hong Kong sweltered on Friday, with temperatures exceeding 36 degrees Celsius in the northern New Territories by mid-afternoon.
Acting Assistant Director of the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO) Choy Chun-wing told RTHK on Friday that minimum temperatures remained at, or above, 28 degrees Celsius over the past six days – matching a record seen in mid-May 2021. The longest continuous record could be broken by the weekend.
The HKO has suggested some relief from the weeklong heatwave is in store, with rain predicted for the weekend.
“The anticyclone aloft will weaken tomorrow, while upper-air disturbances will bring showers and thunderstorms to Guangdong. An easterly airstream will affect the coast of Guangdong in the next couple of days. High temperature weather will be alleviated,” the weather service said on Friday.
But it added that high temperatures may soon return. “With the easterly airstream being replaced by a southerly airstream early next week, the weather over the coastal areas will be very hot again midweek next week.”
See also: How extreme heat became the deadliest silent killer among world weather disasters
At a Thursday press briefing, the Senior Citizen Home Safety Association’s CEO Maura Wong said that it had handled over 7,700 heat-related emergency assistance cases requiring hospitalisation.
“The Association urges the elderly to take precautions against the heat during the height of summer, and carers should also take a more proactive role in looking after the elderly by providing timely care and support,” she said.
At the same event, the HKO’s Choy warned that sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific are predicted to continue rising, with an El Niño event set to develop in the summer and autumn.
See also: How Hong Kong’s elderly face deadly heat inside cramped cage homes
Stronger El Niño events often increase the likelihood of abnormally high temperatures across different regions. Choy warned of a high chance that this summer would be among Hong Kong’s 10 hottest on record.
The Labour Department hoisted the amber Heat Stress at Work Warning on Friday, urging employers to conduct risk assessments for staff who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned environments.
Employers “should take necessary preventive and control measures, including rescheduling work periods, setting up shading covers, providing ventilation and heat dissipation equipment, and reminding employees to replenish water and rest in a timely manner,” the department said in a press release.
Planet warming
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that the intensity and frequency of heatwaves have continued to increase since the 1950s due to human-caused climate change. The prevalence of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide – which trap heat in the atmosphere – raises the planet’s surface temperature, with hotter, longer heatwaves putting lives at risk.
See also: How extreme heat became the deadliest silent killer among world weather disasters
Hong Kong has already warmed by 1.7 degrees Celsius since the Industrial Revolution, research NGO Berkeley Earth says. Heat and humidity may reach lethal levels for protracted periods by the end of the century, according to a 2023 study, making it impossible to stay outdoors in some parts of the world.
