Shocking loss of life adds another grim chapter to the history of Hong Kong

The bus tragedy was the most serious traffic accident and one of the worst disasters in terms of lost lives for three decades in Hong Kong.

In 1973, 15 passengers were killed when their bus plunged down a ravine on Lantau.

The worst tragedy in recent times was the Garley Building fire in Yau Ma Tei in 1996, in which 40 people died and 80 were hurt.

Just hours into 1993, 20 people were killed and more than 100 injured in a stampede by some of the 20,000-strong crowd celebrating New Year's Eve in Lan Kwai Fong.

Thousands of people surged into the streets from restaurants and bars when, at the stroke of midnight, cheering turned to screams as people fell in the surging crowd, sparking panic.

Before the Garley Building fire, 11 workers were incinerated when fire broke out at a North Point wig factory in January 1981.