IT IS LATE AFTERNOON at the zebra crossing outside Sogo department store in Causeway Bay. Passersby stare at a man in leather shoes and grey trousers.
Allen Cheung Yiu-lam, 51, appears similar to most men his age - but only from the neck down. Look higher and he seems to be wearing a gas mask, a grey contraption shaped like a pig's snout.
Some bystanders whisper and laugh, others recoil and glower at him. Cheung largely ignores them, impervious to their reaction. 'I don't care what other people think of me, wearing a mask is the only way to protect myself,' he says.
Cheung is apparently the first person seen wearing an anti-pollution mask in Hong Kong.
'Not wearing a mask is like gas suicide,' he says.
His words ring true. Last month air pollution in Hong Kong hit its highest level in almost a year. On Friday, March 23, the roadside index in Central peaked at 150 - the highest reading since the record of 174 on March 29 last year and well above the 100 mark at which people with heart or respiratory problems are advised to stay indoors and avoid exercise.
When it comes to battling the SAR's choking fumes and particulate-laden air, Cheung says there is only one solution: masks.