Power of Instagram used to wage war on Hong Kong's dripping air cons
Campaigners hope to shame officials into action by using app to post photos of dripping water
Hong Kong's dripping air conditioners are the target of a community-led initiative that will harness social media to report leaks to the government.
Earlier this month the revealed how thousands of dripping air conditioners were going largely unchecked. Complaints about dripping air conditioners pour into the Food and Environmental Health Department each year, but only a fraction are followed up, the report revealed.
The number of complaints has soared to 170,407 in the past 10 years, though environmental groups estimate the number of faulty units is likely to be far higher because reporting them is an arduous, often thankless task.
Drop the Drip, which launched this week, asks users of Instagram, the phone photography app used by one and a half million people in Hong Kong, to post photos of offending devices when they come across them.
By snapping the leaking machines and using the hashtag #dropthedrip, the offending spot will automatically be uploaded to a map and database.
The database will trigger an automatic daily email to the department detailing all air conditioners reported that day.
"We realised that it is difficult to report dripping air cons, and that there's not much follow up when you do," said group organiser Kate Desmarais, 27, who had been trying for months to get one fixed outside her front door in Sheung Wan.
"I tried calling in to complain, but I kept getting transferred from department to department," she said, adding that she decided to try and "streamline" the complaints-making system by using social media.
"This is an issue that has gone unresolved for a long time, and one that affects all walks of life in Hong Kong," said Desmarais, who moved here from Cape Town in South Africa one year ago and works in advertising.
"Social media is something we all use as it's easy and fun, so I thought we could really create some noise on this issue and get the community behind it."
The campaign launched with an accompanying short video showing frustrated Hongkongers being dripped on.
"There's a whole range of emotions you can go through when you get dripped on," said Desmarais. "There's hopelessness, annoyance, anger."
The video, by director Tristyn Vonberg, shows droplets splashing onto the faces of pedestrians. "[The discomfort of being dripped on] is exaggerated in the video, but we really wanted people watching it to take action."
Owning an air conditioner that drips water onto the streets and passers-by below is illegal, and offenders face a fine of up to HK$10,000 upon conviction.
But of the 19,700 complaints about dripping air conditioners last year, prosecution was pursued against only three owners. By June this year, 8,900 complaints were lodged, but no one has been prosecuted to date.
How to report a dripping air con using Instagram
1. Take a photo or video (three to 15 seconds) with your phone.
2. Upload onto Instagram, set your location, and post adding hashtag #dropthedrip.
3. Photo will be added to a database linked to Google Maps marking coordinates of air con.
