Hangzhou Urban Area Hit by Intense Convective Weather Amid High Temperatures
On the afternoon of August 25th, the main urban area of Hangzhou (including Gongshu District, Xihu District, Shangcheng District, etc.) was suddenly attacked by strong convective weather at nearly 40℃, leading to short but heavy rain, thunderstorms with strong winds (some exceeding level 10), and hail, drawing attention.
The Hangzhou Meteorological Observatory issued a yellow thunderstorm warning at 13:00, stating that due to the influence of a strong convective cloud system, it was expected that from the afternoon to the early night, some streets in Shangcheng District, Gongshu District, Xihu District, and Binjiang District would experience thunderstorms with winds reaching levels 8 to 10.
At 13:03, the warning was upgraded to an orange alert for thunderstorm with strong winds but no hail warning was issued.
Meteorological observatory staff in Hangzhou mentioned that since the hail was relatively small and short-lived, with limited impact, and most hail in summer would melt, considering these factors, they did not issue a hail warning. They explained that from a technical point of view, short-term warnings based on hourly data are more challenging for precise observation stations.
The staff also reminded that in the afternoon of the 25th until early night, there could be short periods of heavy to torrential rain, thunderstorms with strong winds, and isolated small hail. The high temperature weather will persist in the coming week, with a possibility of isolated hail in some areas.
On that day, topics labeled as “Shanghai heavy rain” and “Hangzhou hail” quickly trended on Weibo.
A Hangzhou netizen posted a video claiming to have suddenly encountered strong winds, heavy rain, and hail on the road. They mentioned that the hail lasted for a few minutes, hitting them painfully, and some broken branches were blown by the strong wind.
Another netizen stated, “I witnessed it, in Gongshu District, under 40 degrees, there was hail. People in the neighborhood were all taking videos. Meanwhile, in the Qiantang District, under 40 degrees of scorching sun, what kind of weather is this?” Another netizen shared, “After work, when I returned home, more than a dozen large trees in the neighborhood were uprooted, and in a friend’s house, due to not closing the windows, rainwater flooded into the bedroom.”
In addition, on August 24th, the main urban area of Hangzhou reached 40.3℃, setting a new high for the year and the second-highest temperature in late August (second only to 40.6℃ in 2022). So far this year, Hangzhou has experienced 40 days of high temperatures, with the number of consecutive days of high temperatures in August equaling the historical record.