Broken escalator at Hong Kong's Times Square sparks safety fears

[Sammyboy RSS Feed]

An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:


Broken escalator at Hong Kong's Times Square sparks safety fears after mainland Chinese woman’s horrific death

PUBLISHED : Monday, 03 August, 2015, 12:38pm
UPDATED : Monday, 03 August, 2015, 11:19pm

Ben Westcott and Naomi Ng



This photo was widely shared on social media. Photo: SCMP Pictures

A deadly incident on an escalator on the mainland, where a woman was killed after falling into the mechanism, could never happen in Hong Kong because that model of escalator is not installed here, according to a government adviser.

The statement came after social media went into a frenzy over a malfunctioning escalator which broke down on Sunday morning at the Times Square shopping centre in Causeway Bay.

A Facebook user posted a photo of one of the main escalators at the mall with one of the metal steps jutting out of the machinery and broken yellow pieces scattered around it.

The photo was quickly shared across social media, attracting hundreds of shares and comments, including people expressing concern at the image.



The incident at Times Square came less than a week after a woman was killed in an escalator accident in mainland China. Photo: SCMP Pictures

"How can this happen? If the escalator is being overused then [management] should step up inspection checks," one contributor said.

"Saying that the escalator is frequently overused is not an acceptable reason."

The incident came less than a week after a woman in Hubei province was killed when she fell through a broken escalator floorplate into the machinery below.

But Lift and Escalator Safety Advisory Committee member Charles Wong Kai-hon said the same incident could not occur in Hong Kong as the model of escalator involved hadn't been installed in the city.

"After the [Hubei] incident, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department reminded all contractors and engineers to take extra care during routine maintenance and periodic examination," he said.

"I believe escalators in Hong Kong are safe and the incident which happened in China will not happen in Hong Kong."

Wong said the incident at Times Square had involved the normal activation of the escalator's safety protection mechanism.



A cleaner mopping an escalator at a Shanghai mall had to have his foot amputated after it was caught in this machine on Saturday. Photo: SCMP

Since June 2011, 24 people have been injured on escalators in Hong Kong.

A Times Square spokeswoman said all escalators in the complex had regular check-ups and maintenance and that safety was taken very seriously.

"The escalator from the ground floor to the second floor at Times Square stopped [on Sunday] morning at around 10am and no one was injured," she said.

"The escalator resumed service at around 2.30pm."






Click here to view the whole thread at www.sammyboy.com.