Five people were trapped in a lift dangling some 24 storeys above ground in a Ma On Shan public housing estate after a cable broke.
The lift was about 20 years old but residents said engineers inspected it only a week ago and were satisfied it was in working condition.
Sunday's incident was the latest in a series of lift mishaps involving broken cables. In the other cases the lifts had passed safety checks months earlier.
A legislator has called on the government to tighten monitoring of safety checks by lift companies. And the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department plans to commission experts at the University of Hong Kong to probe the accident.
The incident at Heng Shan House on the Heng On Estate, Ma On Shan, happened as the lift was ascending with five people.
When it reached the 18th floor, it shook lightly and it plunged for a few seconds when reaching the 24th floor before coming to a halt, passengers told Cable TV. They heard a cable breaking and were trapped for about half an hour before being rescued by firemen. There were no injuries reported.
