Tears of happiness for chance to be donor

Customs inspector Simon Hui Sai-man has spoken of his 'indescribable happiness' after donating part of his liver to save the life of a critically injured colleague.

Hui wept yesterday as he spoke publicly for the first time since the operation four days ago in which part of his organ was implanted in fellow officer Yuen Wai-cheung, who had been injured in the line of duty.

'It is an amazing feeling when you see a person's life continue because of you,' he said. 'The happiness is indescribable.'

Hui, whose swift recovery after such a serious operation has astonished doctors, said he had been to see Yuen - whom he had not met before the surgery - and had agreed to meet later for a game of chess.

'We had a simple conversation; Yuen thanked me and I cried as it was a touching moment,' he said.

Meanwhile, doctors said Yuen, who was in a coma before the operation, was still disorientated and had trouble believing he was alive.

'Sometimes he thinks he is already dead and in hell and calls me or other medical staff Emperor of the Underworld,' Professor Lo Chung-mau, head of the University of Hong Kong's liver transplant team, said. This was normal in people who had suffered such trauma and could last for days to two weeks. 'We keep talking with him and repeatedly reminding him that he is alive in a hospital in Hong Kong,' Lo said.