Firefighters and clean-up workers took more than six hours to remove a container truck loaded with 17 tonnes of poisonous chemicals after the load rolled over on an elevated highway in Sha Tin.
The crash occurred shortly after 12.30pm as the truck travelled in the slow lane of Shing Mun Tunnel Road near the junction with Tai Po Road, bringing traffic to a standstill. The vehicle was on its way to the mainland with 70 barrels of chemicals.
Police said the truck ran out of control while veering right to avoid another vehicle changing lanes.
'The vehicle went across the central divider and stopped in the opposite [Tsuen Wan-bound] lane while its shipping container toppled onto one side and remained in the Tai Po-bound lane,' a police officer said.
The door of the container broke open and the barrels containing dangerous chemicals were loose inside. But police said there was no spill.
The driver, 35, was trapped and pulled from the truck by firemen. He was treated for minor injuries at Prince of Wales Hospital.