A farm in Yuen Long that is known for its Instagram-worthy summertime bloom of sunflowers was left flooded after heavy rains fell across Hong Kong.
Leung Yat-shum, who owns Shun Sum Yuen farm, posted videos on Facebook Tuesday of him trudging through the muddy floodwaters, which reached up to his chest.
“I don’t dare go any deeper because the water will surpass my head,” Leung said in one of the clips, demonstrating the water level to be at least 1.3 meters deep.
The observatory hoisted the typhoon 3 alert on Monday evening as a tropical storm neared the western Guangdong coast. The amber rainstorm warning was also in force during parts of Tuesday.
A flood announcement was also issued in western New Territories around noon Tuesday.
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Located in San Tin, an area known for its sprawling farms and wetlands, Leung’s sunflower field is a popular photography hotspot. The farm attracts Hongkongers from across the city during the summer, when the tall yellow flowers are in bloom.
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Adverse weather has decimated Leung’s crops before. “Every [rainy season] I am always worried—when it rains, there is nothing I can do,” Leung told Stand News.
He said he has been writing letters since the 1980s to the Home Affairs Department and the Drainage Services Department requesting for flood prevention measures, but to no avail.
On Facebook, Leung wrote that the farm is closed until further notice. The sunflowers are expected to re-bloom by early September, he added.
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