Chief Executive John Lee said on Friday that there is a need to review how the government issues warnings during extreme weather conditions.

His comment came after Hong Kong was hit by an unprecedented amount of rainfall that triggered floods and landslides and brought transport to a virtual standstill.

Speaking to reporters after inspecting Wong Tai Sin and Shau Kei Wan – areas worst affected by the torrential downpour – Lee said the city was hit by "90 days' worth of rain in a single day".

“The amount of rainfall was beyond our control. What we can do is issue the most comprehensive warnings possible and ensure that we have sufficient deployment and response measures in place,” he said.

“Since the Observatory issued the Black Rainstorm Warning Signal, all government departments immediately took action and continuously deployed new tasks.”

The CE said his administration will consider ways to improve its information-dissemination system to give people more time to prepare for emergency situations.

He added that the priority now is to carry out post-disaster work.