Poor workmanship and a lack of maintenance contributed to the fall of a concrete slab from an illegal canopy, which killed a hawker, an inquest heard yesterday.
The canopy was not the only unauthorised structure on the 35-year-old building in Tung Choi Street, Mongkok, according to structural engineer Ku Wai-ming.
Mr Ku, of the Buildings Department, told the Coroner's Court that what was supposed to be a balcony on the top floor of the 11-storey residential building had been turned into a room.
The inquest has not been told whether the illegal structures have been removed.
The accident happened when the left corner of the canopy gave way and crashed through the awning of a lingerie stall, where operator Sukey Liu Ngan-fong, 41, was hit on the head at 3pm on August 10, 1999.
The mother-of-two was taken to Kwong Wah Hospital with head injuries, where she was certified dead on arrival.