A fire broke out at the top of an elevator shaft in a Tsim Sha Tsui building yesterday morning, days after the government ordered that 1,000 lifts across the city were to be checked for safety following an accident in Tai Po.
The same company, Finland-based manufacturer Kone Elevator, is involved in both incidents.
Shortly before 11am, residents of Pacific Mansion, a commercial and business building on Kimberley Road, detected a burning smell coming from one of the two lifts. A security guard called fire services officers, who discovered a fire in a room on the roof that housed the motors and cables for the lifts.
'Firemen used an extinguisher to douse the flames. No one was injured,' a government spokesman said. Police said a short circuit was the suspected cause of the blaze.
Kone, which is responsible for maintenance of the lifts, said there had been a 'misunderstanding'.
'As far as I know, there was no fire but only smoke,' said Kone's service director, Jonny Leung. 'And without having to fix anything, the lift works normally.'
Officers from the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department were present when their workers inspected the lift, Mr Leung said.