The Star Ferry pier at Edinburgh Place appears cursed.
A hunger strike at the pier in Central on April 5, 1966, triggered a five-day riot, the first in the city's modern history.
So Sau-chung, a 27-year-old translator, staged a hunger strike in protest against the transport advisory committee's flagged fare rise. He had said he would continue the strike until he collapsed or the proposed increase was dropped.
Mr So was arrested the next day, prompting thousands of young men to take to the streets of Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok in violent protests. About 430 people were detained and Mr So was charged with causing 'obstruction and disturbance'. He was jailed for two months.
Chinese University political analyst Ma Ngok said the protest was a mix of anti-colonialism and hardship. The colonial government backed down, partially withdrawing the fare rise so that only first-class passengers were charged the extra five cents to cross the harbour.
Forty years later, on December 14, 2006, a gathering marking the pier's 49th birthday erupted into a standoff between protesters and the police, with demonstrators shouting slogans demanding the preservation of the pier and that town planning be democratic.
Protesters climbed the scaffolding around the clock tower and others marched towards the site's entrance but were immediately rounded up by dozens of police officers. It was the third such clash in as many days.