Days of relentless rain in Hong Kong set off major floods on Tuesday that swept cars away, inundated a hospital emergency ward and left buses stranded. Roads winding down the city’s steep hills turned into rivers.

香港连日暴雨在周二引发严重洪灾，车辆被冲走，一家医院急诊室淹水，巴士被困。盘绕陡峭山势的城市道路变成了河道。

Even for Hong Kong, a city accustomed to seasonal typhoons, the record-breaking deluge has pushed it to its limits, straining city services and testing the patience and wits of its residents.

即使对于习惯季节性台风的香港来说，这场破纪录的暴雨仍使其达到承受极限，城市服务系统不堪重负，民众的耐心与智慧面临考验。

On Tuesday morning, the authorities issued their highest rain alert for the fourth time in eight days. The “black rainstorm warning” means an expectation of 70 millimeters, or about 2.8 inches, or more of rainfall in one hour. On Tuesday, Hong Kong had recorded 14 inches of rain by midafternoon, the highest daily amount for August since annual records began in 1884.

周二早间，香港八天内第四次发布最高级别暴雨警报。“黑色暴雨警告”意味着每小时降雨量将达70毫米以上。截至周二下午三点，单日降雨量已达355.7毫米，创1884年有气象记录以来的8月最高日降雨量。

Previously, the city had issued no more than three “black” alerts across an entire year, said the Hong Kong Observatory, which issues the city’s weather forecasts. “You are advised to take shelter in a safe place and stay there,” it warned.

负责发布天气预报的香港天文台表示，此前全年黑雨警告最多不超过三次。该机构提醒：“市民应留在安全地方暂避。”

Many people in Hong Kong break out their umbrellas and rain boots and go about their business in heavy rain. This time, the successive days of downpours have soaked the ground and filled drains to overflowing, creating unusual disruption and danger. City workers waded into waist-high water that had accumulated on parking lots, looking for drains to unplug.

在香港，许多人即使在大雨天也会打伞穿上雨靴，照常外出办事。然而这一次，连日的暴雨已经将地面浸透、下水道溢出，造成了不同寻常的混乱与危险。市政工人在停车场涉入齐腰深的积水中，寻找堵塞的排水口以便疏通。

“It rains a lot more in the past two years,” said Luz Viado, a 78-year-old restaurant kitchen worker who has been living in Hong Kong since the 1970s. “But I still have to work today.”

“这两年雨量明显增多，”78岁的餐厅后厨卢兹·维亚多表示。这位自1970年代定居香港的老人说：“但我今天仍要上班。”

Much of urban Hong Kong is built on or near steep hillsides, and the government reported at least a dozen landslides across the city. No deaths or injuries have been reported.

香港市区多建于陡峭的山坡之上或周边，政府通报至少发生十余起山体滑坡，目前没有人员伤亡报告。


The city canceled school classes and allowed most office workers to work from home on Tuesday. Courts postponed hearings. The Hong Kong International Airport reported that more than 100 flights were delayed. Three dozen passengers and two bus drivers were rescued from two buses that were stranded in floodwaters in Hong Kong’s northeastern Tseung Kwan O area on Monday evening.

全港学校周二停课，多数上班族居家办公。法庭延期审理案件。香港国际机场逾百架航班延误。周一晚，在香港东北部的将军澳地区，两辆巴士被洪水围困，救援人员从车中救出36名乘客和两名司机。

The city observatory forecast more heavy showers on Wednesday.

香港天文台预报周三将持续强降雨。

Over the past week, other parts of East Asia have also been whipped by strong downpours. In Taiwan, at least five people died and three were missing after torrential rains, especially in the south of the island. Last week, heavy rains and flooding in and around Beijing killed dozens of people.

在过去一周，东亚其他地区也遭受了强降雨袭击。在台湾——尤其是该岛南部，特大暴雨导致至少五人死亡，三人失踪。上周，北京及周边地区的强降雨和洪水导致数十人死亡。