Challenges remain at four flooding blackspots

Hong Kong still has four flooding blackspots to overcome, said Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho, as super typhoon Mawar poses a threat of causing a heat wave over the next four days.

Linn said improvement works are undergoing at two of the flooding blackspots at Pok Fu Lam Village and Chatham Road South in Tsim Sha Tsui.

The Drainage Services Department has eliminated 127 flooding blackspots since 1995.

No flooding incidents were reported when the Hong Kong Observatory hoisted the first red rainstorm warning signal of the year on May 7.

The maintenance work at Pok Fu Lam Village is expected to be completed in the next two years, while the improvement program at Chatham Road South started last August.

The remaining two blackspots - Lam Tsuen Valley Basin and Shek Wu Wai, Yuen Long - have completed the first stage of improvement and are currently under planning for the next stages of construction. "We will continue to improve the flood protection and discharge ability to reduce the risks brought about by flooding and respond to challenges brought by climate change," Linn said.

The DSD makes use of measures including interception, storage and upgrading pipes to tackle flooding problems in different areas.

The department has introduced remote-controlled desilting robots to ensure the proper functioning of drains. A team of 20 with unmanned aircraft was set up last year to increase the efficiency and work safety of river channel monitoring on a regular basis.

Photographing can be performed by the aircraft at hillsides, woodlands and seashores in unrestricted flying zones, which halves the time needed for regular inspection.

Inspection is also carried out after rainstorms and when necessary. As of April, robots had been set more than 230 times, averaging 25 operations per month.

"The integration between environmental conservation, construction and community will also be considered to promote a water-friendly culture," Linn said.

The DSD has beautified and altered the interchange of Shan Pui River and Kam Tin River, along with Yuen Long Bypass Floodway into a public area in Nam Sang Wai, Yuen Long.

Jordan Valley Channel is renovated under the theme of "Rivers in the City," showcasing elements of biodiversity, and increasing public open space.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong will embrace a heat wave until Friday with temperature rising to about 34 degrees Celsius tomorrow as super typhoon Mawar moves towards the Philippines.

Showers and thunderstorms triggered by high temperatures will affect southern China. There will also be swells over coastal waters.

Mawar is expected to enter the eastern waters of Luzon tomorrow and head north. However, its subsequent movement is still uncertain.