XN000022-1978-01-09 — Page 6

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MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 1978

WARMEST DECEMBER IN TEN YEARS

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HONG KONG EXPERIENCED THE WARMEST DECEMBER SINCE 1968 WITH THE MONTH'S MEAN TEMPERATURE OF 19.4 DEGREES CELSIUS -- TWO DEGREES ABOVE AVERAGE AND THE SECOND HIGHEST ON RECORD FOR DECEMBER.

LAST MONTH WAS ALSO SUNNIER AND DRIER THAN USUAL. AS IN NOVEMBER, VERY LITTLE RAINFALL WAS RECORDED AND DECEMBER'S RAINFALL OF 7.9 MM REPRESENTED ONLY 32 PER CENT OF THE AVERAGE.

TWO TYPHOONS WERE REPORTED OVER THE WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC DURING THE MONTH BUT NEITHER OF THEM CAME NEAR HONG KONG.

THE FIRST 24 DAYS OF THE MONTH WERE SUNNY AND MILD. HOWEVER, COOLER CONDITIONS WERE EXPERIENCED AFTER THE PASSAGE OF A COLD FRONT ON THE NIGHT OF DECEMBER 24 AND THE WEATHER BECAME CLOUDY WITH SOME LIGHT RAIN.

ON THE MORNING OF DECEMBER 26, TEMPERATURES FELL TO A MINIMUM OF 13.6 DEGREES CELSIUS WHICH WAS THE LOWEST RECORDED

IN THE MONTH.

RAIN,

THE REST OF THE MONTH REMAINED CLOUDY WITH SOME LIGHT

AND THE WEATHER GRADUALLY BECAME WARMER AND MORE HUMID.

ON THE MORNING OF DECEMBER 30, VISIBILITY WAS REDUCED TO 300 METRES AT WAGLAN ISLAND AND IN THE AFTERNOON, THE FOLLOWING DAY, TEMPERATURES ROSE TO AN UNSEASONABLE MAXIMUM OF 24.9 DEGREES CELSIUS, WHICH WAS THE HIGHEST RECORDED IN THE MONTH.

NO AIRCRAFT WAS DIVERTED FROM HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT DUE TO ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS LAST MONTH.

DURING THE MONTH, FIRE DANGER WARNINGS WERE ISSUED ON 17 DAYS.

STAMPS TO MARK YEAR OF THE HORSE ON SALE SOON

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THE TWO COMMEMORATIVE STAMPS TO MARK THE FORTHCOMING LUNAR YEAR OF THE HORSE WILL BE PUT ON SALE AT ALL POST OFFICES ON JANUARY 26.

THE TWO NEW STAMPS IN 20 CENTS AND $1.30 DENOMINATIONS, EACH DEPICTING A HORSE IN AN ANCIENT CHINESE STONE CARVING, WERE DESIGNED BY GRAPHIC ATELIER LTD OF HONG KONG.

IT WILL BE THE TWELFTH AND THE LAST IN THE SERIES OF LUNAR YEAR COMMEMORATIVE STAMPS ISSUED BY THE POST OFFICE. THE FIRST IN THE SERIES WAS ISSUED IN 1967 TO MARK THE YEAR OF THE RAM.

/THE NEW