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SCMP Reporter

Hung Yeung Suet-ying, 56, is wondering what the effect will be on the health of her family after she cooked a weekend meal in water meant for flushing toilets.

  Mrs Hung moved to Ma On Shan from a public housing flat in Ma Tau Wai Estate a month ago, and is still busy tidying her new Home Ownership Scheme flat.

  The family immigrated from Fujian about 20 years ago. Mr Hung is retired and Mrs Hung is a housewife. The couple enjoy visiting friends and relatives in their homeland.

  They live with two sons, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren aged six and eight in Kam Fung Court.

What's on your mind?   I'm busy handling the Housing Department on the matter of handing back our old flat to them. We've been living here just a month and there are a lot of things to be settled. The environment here is not bad and our family likes the new flat very much - until the salt water was piped into our home.

 What do you think of the incident in which your fresh-water supply was accidentally replaced with sea water?   I am very surprised. My married daughter and her family came to visit us that night and I used the water to cook a big meal. None of us realised there was anything wrong until the water supply was suspended after our dinner.

  We dared not give the water to our grandchildren to drink and bought some soft drinks for them.

  I feel quite terrible when I recall the meal, because flushing water must be very dirty.

How does your family feel about it?   My husband is very angry. He made a great effort to get water from the water wagons for us to take a bath that night, after the fresh-water supply was suspended. We were exhausted and did not go to bed until very late. My husband even blamed my sons for buying a flat here. He said our old home was much better than the new one.

What are you going to do in the next few days?   Some of my relatives in China just came to visit us. We had a good time when our family spent part of the Lunar New Year in Fujian. I am going to take them touring round Hong Kong and visiting other friends. I hope they enjoy their trip.



Eau de toilette raises a stink