Acid leak from Hong Kong mall ceiling leads to eight injured
Workers at Skyline Plaza in Tsuen Wan had earlier used corrosive liquid to clear an old clogged pipe, which resulted in the incident
Eight people were injured when corrosive liquid dripped from the ceiling of a Hong Kong shopping mall on Sunday, sparking panic at the scene.
Police received a report at 12.06pm that two small holes were spotted in the ceiling of Skyline Plaza in Tsuen Wan. Liquid of corrosive nature dripped from the holes onto two men and six women, aged 10 to 60.
Some mall-goers also tripped and fell in the ensuing panic.
“They sustained slight injuries to their heads, necks and arms. They were taking the escalator at the time and were not aware of the dripping liquid,” Raina Cheng Ka-wing, a senior inspector from the force’s Tsuen Wan district investigation team, said.
13 years’ jail for Mong Kok acid attack that injured 11
Cheng said that on Saturday, mall staff had discovered that a pipe at the pantry of a staff lounge on the third floor was clogged. Repair men from the mall arrived later that day and pumped corrosive liquid into the pipe in an attempt to unclog it.
The substance had been diluted with water, Cheng added.
The liquid leaked through because the pipe was old and dilapidated. “No one has been arrested. But police will look into the case and we do not rule out the possibility that someone will have to bear criminal responsibility in the future,” Cheng said.
“We did not find any deliberate action behind the incident.”
Cheng said the mall was not crowded at the time of the leak. All of the injured were sent to the Yan Chai Hospital for treatment.
In i-Cable news footage, a man showed a hole in his shirt apparently caused by contact with the liquid.
“I didn’t know what happened. I was talking on the phone, and then I felt a burning sensation. It was just one drip and look what happened to my shirt,” the man said.
From 2008 to 2010, Hong Kong was caught in the grip of a series of corrosive liquid attacks.
Acid attack launched from camera blind spot
In December 2008, two bottles of acid were thrown from the rooftop of Yuen King Building in Mong Kok, injuring 46 Christmas shoppers.
