Hong Kong is heading into a sweltering end to the work week, with the city’s weather observatory warning that temperatures could climb as high as 34 degrees Celsius on Friday as a trough of low pressure approaches the southern China coast.
Temperatures across the city already surged past 32 degrees around midday Wednesday, driven by an anticyclone aloft over the northern South China Sea and the Guangdong coast. Conditions are expected to remain largely fine and persistently very hot over the next two days.
The heat relief, however, is expected to come with a storm. The Observatory is forecasting showers and squally thunderstorms from Friday into Saturday as the approaching low-pressure trough pushes through the region. An easterly airstream is then expected to take hold along the Guangdong coast over the weekend, gradually easing the extreme heat.
Meanwhile, Tropical Cyclone Jangmi is tracking across the western North Pacific to the east of the Philippines and is forecast to intensify gradually in the coming days. The system is expected to move generally toward waters east of Taiwan before approaching the vicinity of the Ryukyu Islands, though it poses no immediate direct threat to Hong Kong.
Residents are advised to stay hydrated, limit prolonged outdoor activity during peak afternoon hours, and monitor updates from the Hong Kong Observatory as conditions evolve through the weekend.
