Probe into Monday's power failure on Tseung Kwan O line continues

MTR is still investigating the cause of the power failure which halted train services for five hours on Monday.

Adi Lau Tin-shing, a deputy director of the MTR Corp, said in a radio programme on Tuesday morning that inspections conducted on Monday night found no problem in trains serving the Tseung Kwan O line. The railway company had also checked overhead power devices along the line, and they were operating normally, he said.

A 30-metre section of an overhead power cable had come loose and dangled as low as one metre from the tunnel ceiling between Yau Tong and Tiu Keng Leng stations on Monday afternoon. It caused a power blackout at 12.40pm. Trains on the Tseung Kwan O line were suspended and services did not resume until 5.35pm.

Lau admitted that maintenance for the line were carried out by a contractor, but stressed they were up to MTR standards. He said the power cable in question had just passed an annual inspection in late October.

The railway company could be fined up to HK$7.5 million for the disruption if it was found to be responsible.

Transport minister Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung said the penalty could put pressure on the MTR but he hoped the fine would not be the only reason for the MTR to maintain its standards.

He said the Transport Department received MTR’s notification of the disruption six minutes after it happened. The company was due to hand in a report in three working days.

“The MTR has been a very important means of transportation. We expect it maintains its highest standards at all times,” he said.