XN000022-1980-01-12 — Page 2

SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 1980

WET SUMMER IN

IN 1979

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LAST SUMMER WAS MUCH WETTER THAN NORMAL, ACCORDING TO THE 1979 WEATHER REVIEW ISSUED BY THE ROYAL OBSERVATORY TODAY.

THE ANNUAL RAINFALL FOR 1979 AMOUNTED TO 2 614.7 MM WHICH WAS 368.3 MM ABOVE NORMAL BUT THE YEAR'S MEAN CLOUD INESS AND TEMPORATURES WERE NEAR NORMAL.

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THE FIRST QUARTER WAS VERY WARM AND THE MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR THE FIRST THREE MONTHS WAS 18.6 DEGREES CELSIUS THE THIRD HIGHEST ON RECORD. THE SUMMER WAS COOLER AND LESS SUNNY THAN USUAL WITH AN EXCEPTIONALLY WET AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER.

THE LAST QUARTER OF THE YEAR WAS SUNNY AND VERY DRY WITH ONLY 11 .4 MM OF RAINFALL - THE SECOND LOWEST ON RECORD. DUE TO THE VERY DRY CONDITIONS MANY HILL FIRES BROKE OUT DESTROYING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF TREES AND THOUSANDS OF HECTARES OF VEGETATION.

DURING THE YEAR, THERE WERE A TOTAL OF 29 TROPICAL CYCLONES OVER THE WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC AND THE SOUTH CHINA SEA AND FOR SIX OF THEM TROPICAL CYCLONE WARNING SIGNALS WERE HOISTED IN HONG KONG. THESE SIX BROUGHT ALONG MORE THAN 1 000 MM OF RAINFALL, NEARLY HALF THE AMOUNT OF THE SUMMER RAIN.

HURRICANE SIGNAL NO. 10 WAS HOISTED ON AUGUST 2 WHEN HONG KONG WAS DIRECTLY HIT BY TYPHOON HOPE THE MOST SEVERE TYPHOON TO AFFECT HONG KONG SINCE TYPHOON ROSE IN 1971, THE LAST TIME THE HURRICANE SIGNAL WAS HOISTED WAS IN OCTOBER 1975 FOR TYPHOON ELSIE,

SEVERE TROPICAL STORM MAC PASSED OVER WESTERN LANTAU DURING THE NIGHT OF SEPTEMBER 23 BRINGING GALES AND HEAVY RAIN TO HONG KONG. THE OTHER FOUR TROPICAL CYCLONES ONLY CAUSED STRONG WINDS AND DAMAGE WAS MINIMAL.

THE YEAR BEGAN WITH THE WARMEST JANUARY SINCE 1966 WITH ONLY THREE DAYS WITH MINIMUM TEMPERATURES BELOW 10 DEGREES CELSIUS. THE MONTH WAS CLOUDIER, LESS SUNNY AND SLIGHTLY WETTER THAN NORMAL.

THE YEAR'S LOWEST TEMPERATURE OF 6.1 DEGREES CELSIUS WAS RECORDED ON FEBRUARY 1. ON THE SAME DAY, THE TEMPERATURES AT TATE'S CAIRN AND TAE MO SHAN WERE MINUS 0.1 DEGREE AND MINUS 2.4 DEGREES RESPECTIVELY. TEMPERATURES BEGAN TO RISE THE NEXT DAY AND ON THE WHOLE THE MONTH WAS THE SECOND WARMEST FEBRUARY SINCE 1884 WITH A MEAN TEMPERATURE OF 18.9 DEGREES CELSIUS OR 3.0 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THE WARMEST FEBRUARY WAS IN 1973 WITH A MEAN TEMPERATURE OF 19.2 DEGREES.

MARCH WAS WET, SLIGHTLY WARMER AND MORE HUMID THAN USUAL. THERE WERE ONLY SIX DAYS WITHOUT RAIN AT THE ROYAL OBSERVATORY AND THE TOTAL RAINFALL RECORDED WAS 71.9 MM OR 22.6 MM ABOVE NORMAL.

/THE WET

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