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Transport minister Lam Sai-hung said Clear Water Bay Road - which was partially closed due to a landslide - should be open again by rush hour on Monday morning.

Two-way traffic was sharing the same lane on a section of the road in Hang Hau on Sunday, after a slope measuring 30 metres long and 40 metres deep collapsed amid the torrential downpour the day before.

Part of the pavement also caved in, showing underground pipes.

After inspecting the area, Lam said workers were spraying concrete onto the slope, and more work would be carried out later to further consolidate the structure.

"When we open the road, we have to ensure it's safe after the temporary consolidation work. If we can't do that, we won't open the road," Lam told reporters.

"At the same time, we'll have measures in place. Our contractor and the Highways Department will keep monitoring the situation here. We'll also liaise with the observatory to see if the weather will worsen, and we've installed some sump pumps in case there's heavy rain."

Authorities received 14 other landslide reports on Saturday, when the amber and red rainstorm warning signals were in effect for most of the day.

A climbing carnival took place at Cheung Chau on Sunday, ahead of the island's traditional bun-scrambling competition on Buddha's Birthday.

The 14-metre-high bun tower frame is already in place for the competition on May 15, and carnival-goers were given the chance to see whether they could climb it.

Ms Chung said her son had managed the feat.

"We've tried bun scrambling over the years. When my son was young, he couldn't reach the top. Last time we came, he was able to get there at a slow pace with the help of his dad. But this time, he was able to do it all by himself very quickly," she said.

"I was so happy to see him achieve that because yesterday it was raining really hard so I thought there wouldn't be a chance. Luckily the weather is beautiful. It's a lot of fun."

Ms Chung's 13-year-old son has now climbed the tower at least four times. He gave his advice on the best way to approach the climb.

"There isn't a specific technique to climbing. You just have to grasp the bamboo tightly and watch your footing. I love experiencing Hong Kong culture. I want to preserve and pass on Hong Kong culture like bun scrambling so more people know about it," he said.

"I personally love eating lucky buns and watching bun scrambling on television, so I really wanted to see if it is actually that exhilarating in person, and see if it's really that easy or difficult."

Another visitor, Ms Lok, said she brought her friends from overseas to the carnival, so they could experience a bit of Hong Kong culture.

"We were shaking while climbing because the gaps are so small, but we had a lot of fun. Huge respect to those who can climb up so quickly. I think this is a great tradition to preserve, and I love the meaning behind it," she said.

"We can pass peace to anyone, even if you aren't Chinese. My friends wanted to experience something quite traditional and this definitely checks the box."

Meanwhile, workers have been working hard to reconstruct the three traditional giant bun towers for display ahead of next week's festivities, after Saturday's heavy winds caused the bamboo scaffolding to collapse.

Yung Chi-ming, chairman of the Hong Kong Cheung Chau Bun Festival Committee, said it would take one to two days to complete, but progress was going well.

"We have never experienced the collapse of the bun tower scaffolding before. It was because the heavy winds hit it down. It is quite a rare incident. The latest situation is quite ideal. We thought it would take three to four days, but they've sent more people to help so the speed has increased significantly," he said.

"I arrived at eight in the morning and everything has already been dismantled, and ready for reconstruction. I think everything can be restored in one to two days. I believe it will be reinforced this time around."

Yung also said the incident had incurred a cost, but he had not yet calculated how much money was involved. He added it was most important the Bun Festival runs smoothly next week.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung said the total number of mainland tourists coming to Hong Kong should reach the estimated 800,000 mark with the Golden Week holiday wrapping up on Sunday, adding it would boost the economy by over HK$2 billion.

Speaking on a radio programme on Sunday, Yeung said approximately 670,000 mainland tourists had already come to the territory in the first four days despite the rainy weather.

"The entire Guangdong Province was affected by the unstable weather, and tourists can see that the weather is also not that good in Hong Kong, so they may postpone their trip. However, the overall numbers aren't bad," he said.

"I believe that we will reach our estimated number of tourists. If we have around 800,000 mainland tourists coming to Hong Kong, I think we can earn over two billion dollars in consumption. Even though we have only reached about 700,000 people so far, we should still reach over two billion dollars."

Responding to the mixed reviews of the Labour Day pyrotechnic display, Yeung said it was no surprise that people had expectations for the fireworks show, but the weather was unpredictable in how it would affect the viewing experience.

"Rain is hard to predict, unlike wind which comes when it comes. Even if you see rain clouds, you don't know if it will actually rain. So up until 4pm of that day, we then decided it was appropriate to host the show," he said.

"I was watching from the top of a bridge where the wind was hitting so from the start of the fireworks, the smoke did reach me. However, from other viewing angles, people have sent me clear and beautiful photos of the show."

He added they would learn from this experience and do better in terms of publicity and expectation management in the future.

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak on Saturday said 12 care teams have been deployed to Sai Kung in response to the severe rainfall that hit the area.

At one point, the Observatory recorded over 200 millimetres of rain in the district, causing significant flooding on several roads, including Po Lam Road North and Wan Po Road in Tseung Kwan O, as well as Pak Sha Wan Street in Sai Kung.

The home affairs minister said some care team members were already on duty in temporary shelters while others were checking the district for floods and reporting to the Sai Kung district officer.

She also dismissed claims that some care team members didn't turn up when the rain was at its hardest on Saturday morning.

“Care team members are volunteers and they are fully dedicated to their work. However, during periods of heavy rainfall and when there are floods, the responsibility for addressing standing water and flooding falls to the government's professional departments,” she said. “I think the general public don’t expect care teams to deal with the floods without the necessary equipment.”

She added that most floods in the district had been dealt with before noon and most roads affected had been reopened by 2 pm.

She said the Home Affairs Department had opened nine temporary shelters across Hong Kong for people in need of temporary accommodation.

The Hong Kong Observatory cancelled the amber rainstorm warning signal at 8.45pm on Saturday.

It said heavy rain over Hong Kong had started to ease. The Observatory had issued the amber signal to replace the red rainstorm warning just before 4pm.

However, the forecaster has also warned that another intense band of thundery showers is edging towards the Pearl River Estuary, and this might still affect Hong Kong.

The red signal had been in place since about 9 am and, at around noon, the Observatory warned it might issue its maximum black signal as even heavier rain started to fall across Hong Kong, especially in the east.

Meanwhile, the Drainage Services Department said it mobilised about 70 emergency response teams to handle flooding, involving over 160 emergency response teams comprising about 600 people. It said that by 7.30pm, all 16 flooding cases, including 12 in the Sai Kung and Tseung Kwan O areas, had been resolved.

The Geotechnical Engineering Office said it received 15 reports of landslides in the Sai Kung area.

The Fire Services Department said that as of 7pm it had handled 25 reports of people trapped in lifts, and 71 reports from automatic fire alarm systems. It said fourteen people were evacuated.

The government said it received 22 reports of fallen trees with no injuries as of 8pm.

The Home Affairs Department said it had opened nine temporary shelters located in Southern District on Hong Kong Island, Yau Tsim Mong and Kowloon City in Kowloon, and Tseung Kwan O and Sai Kung in the New Territories.
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Last updated: 2024-05-05 HKT 00:09

The Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun on Saturday said the new minimum wage formula will provide support to Hong Kong's 17,000 low income workers, who currently earn an hourly rate of HK$40.

The new formula - which bars any reduction - takes effect next year, after being given the go-ahead on Tuesday by the Chief Executive, John Lee, and the Executive Council.

Speaking to reporters after appearing on a Commercial Radio programme, Sun said the reform balanced the interests of both labour and employers.

"It has taken into account, on the one hand, the need to protect those earning a minimum wage, that their wage is being protected; and also, at the same time, to ensure that the formula is affordable, and also acceptable to the business sector," Sun said.

Earlier the labour minister told an RTHK radio programme that the government would enhance safety awareness following the deaths of two sewer maintenance workers, who are believed to have been exposed to toxic gas in a manhole last week in Sha Tin.

Sun stated that new guidelines for those working in confined spaces, to be announced this month, will make it mandatory to install CCTV at the entrance and exit of manholes.