MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 1981
8
COOLER AND CLOUDIER NOVEMBER
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THE 1 654 MM OF RAINFALL RECORDED BETWEEN JANUARY 1 AND NOVEMBER 30 THIS YEAR, WAS 25 PER CENT BELOW THE AVERAGE FIGURE OF 2 199.4 MM, THE ROYAL OBSERVATORY REPORTS.
NOVEMBER ITSELF WAS COOLER AND CLOUDIER, AND A LITTLE WETTER THAN NORMAL.
THE MEAN TEMPERATURE WAS 20.3 DEGREES CELSIUS, ONE DEGREE BELOW NORMAL, WHILE TOTAL DURATION OF SUNSHINE WAS 143.1 HOURS, OR 48.4 HOURS BELOW THE NORM FOR THIS PERIOD.
AIR TEMPERATURE AT THE ROYAL OBSERVATORY FELL TO A MINIMUM OF 11.3 DEGREES CELSIUS ON NOVEMBER 9, THE LOWEST OF THE MONTH, ALTHOUGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURES OF 3.5 DEGREES CELSIUS AND 5.2 DEGREES CELSIUS WERE RECORDED AT TAI MO SHAN AND TATE'S CAIRN RESPECTIVELY.
THE WEATHER BECAME PROGRESSIVELY WARMER FROM NOVEMBER 10 AND REMAINED FINE AND SUNNY UNTIL NOVEMBER 16 WHEN THE TEMPERATURE ROSE TO A MAXIMUM OF 27.5 DEGREES CELSIUS, THE HIGHEST OF THE MONTH.
WHILE GENERALLY FINE WEATHER PREVAILED THROUGHOUT MOST OF THE MONTH, AND THIS WAS BORNE OUT BY THE FACT THAT NO AIRCRAFT WAS DIVERTED FROM HONG KONG DUE TO ADVERSE WEATHER, SOME OF OUR NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES WERE NOT SO LUCKY.
IN THE PHILIPPINES, TYPHOON IRMA LEFT A TRAIL OF DEATH AND DESTRUCTION ON NOVEMBER 24. IT CLAIMED 200 LIVES AND LEFT 400 000 OTHERS HOMELESS, MOST OF THEM IN CAMARINES SUR PROVINCE, ABOUT 120 NAUTICAL MILES SOUTHEAST OF MANILA, BEFORE DISSIPATING NEAR THE RYUKYU ISLANDS ON NOVEMBER 28.
NO THUNDERSTORM OR HEAVY RAIN WARNINGS WERE ISSUED DURING THE MONTH. BUT THE YELLOW FIRE DANGER WARNING WAS IN EFFECT ON NOVEMBER 8, 14-15, 21-22 AND THE RED FIRE DANGER WARNING WAS IN EFFECT ON 10-11 AND 27-30.
THE MEAN RELATIVE HUMIDITY AT 74 PER CENT, HOWEVER, WAS ONLY 5 PER CENT ABOVE THE NORM.
THE SEA WAS ROUGH, HOWEVER, ON NOVEMBER 30 AND A CHINESE JUNK SANK ABOUT 20 NAUTICAL MILES SOUTHEAST OF HONG KONG WITH 13 SEAMEN REPORTED MISSING.
FARTHER AWAY, FOUR TROPICAL CYCLONES DEVELOPED OVER THE WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC AND THE SOUTH CHINA SEA DURING THE MONTH. A TROPICAL DEPRESSION FORMED OFF THE COAST OF VIETNAM NEAR HO CHI MINH VILLE ON NOVEMBER 10 BUT DISSIPATED OVER LAND THE NEXT DAY.
TYPHOON HAZEN, FORMED ON NOVEMBER 13 NEAR THE MARIANA ISLANDS LIKE TYPHOON IRMA AND TAKING A SIMILAR COURSE, DID NOT CAUSE ANY SERIOUS DAMAGE AS IT CROSSED THE CENTRAL PHILIPPINES ON NOVEMBER 20. TROPICAL STORM JEFF DEVELOPED NEAR THE CAROL INE ISLANDS AND DISSIPATED NEAR THE RYUKYU ISLANDS.
/ EUISTED