Broken escalator at Hong Kong's Times Square sparks safety fears after mainland Chinese woman’s horrific death
An escalator at Hong Kong’s Times Square shopping centre dramatically broke down on Sunday – less than a week after a woman was killed in an escalator accident in mainland China, and only a day after a Shanghai shopping mall cleaner's foot was amputated in a similar incident. The news sent social media into a frenzy.
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.
"How can this happen? If the escalator is being overused then [management] should step up inspection checks," one contributor said.