HKO - Under the Same Sky 130 Years - Display Area 6
Display Area 6 : Natural Disasters in Hong Kong before WWII
Display Area Introduction
The typhoon that struck Hong Kong in September 1874 was one of the most destructive on record, with more than two thousand people killed. After the Observatory came into being, two typhoons in September 1906 and September 1937 each brought a death toll of over 10,000 people. Most of the casualties were caused by the tsunami-like storm surges, flooding coastal low-lying areas and sinking thousands of vessels and fishing boats. Apart from the disasters brought about by typhoons, heavy rain also incurred severe damage to Hong Kong. Causing severe flooding and damage to buildings and roads, the rainfall of 534 millimetres recorded at the Hong Kong Observatory headquarters on 19 July 1926 is still the highest daily rainfall recorded in the territory.
Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of History
Rare photographs of severe weather and sea states taken near the centre of a typhoon that hit Hong Kong during the overnight period on 27-28 July 1908. Over 270 people were reported missing and 480 dead as a result of the typhoon.
The series of rainstorms on 29-30 May 1889 brought a total of 841 mm of rainfall to Hong Kong in two days, an unbroken record to date, resulting in extensive damage in Central after the rainstorms.
Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of History
The typhoon of 2 September 1937 was among the strongest tropical cyclones to have hit Hong Kong on record before World War II. This anemogram shows that the maximum gust at the North Point power station reached 264 kilometres per hour.
Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of History
A typhoon on 2 September 1937 made a direct hit on Hong Kong resulting in more than 10,000 deaths. This photograph shows a stranded ship alongside a pier.
Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of History
The rainstorm of 19 July 1926 brought 534 mm of rainfall to Hong Kong in a single day, an unbroken record to date, resulting in the severely damaged St. Francis Street, Wanchai under the floods.
Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of History
