Hong Kong could see five to eight typhoons this year, with the typhoon season starting in June or earlier, the head of the Hong Kong Observatory said on Tuesday.

In a press conference, Chan Pak-wai, director of the HKO, also said that the city’s annual mean temperature was expected to remain above normal this year.

“There will likely be about five to eight tropical cyclones coming within 500 kilometers of Hong Kong during the year, which is normal to above normal,” Chan said.

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The annual rainfall in Hong Kong is expected to be near normal, ranging from 2,100 millimeters to 2,700mm.

Chan urged members of the public to be prepared for the rainy season as Hong Kong would still be affected by rainstorms and localized heavy rain.

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He also said that the climate continues to warm up, with 2024 tagged as the warmest year on record globally according to World Meteorological Organization.

Locally, 2024 was also the warmest on record with an annual mean temperature reaching 24.8 degrees Celsius, 1.3 degrees above the 1991-2020 normal, Chan added.