ILLEGAL dumping of soil and debris on Lantau led inadvertently to the death of a lorry driver, the Coroner's Court heard yesterday. The court heard the dumping of soil on a hillside on south Lantau - lifting the land level by three metres over a period of time - had contributed to the death of Chiu Yuk-cheung, who was badly injured when a crane he was operating touched overhead wires on April 26. Chiu died on May 4 in Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Coroner Warner Banks heard that Chiu, 54, was carrying out soil-shifting work for Mak Hang Kei (HK) Construction Ltd, sub-contractors for China Light and Power. On the day of the accident, he drove a lorry - equipped with a hydraulic crane - from a construction site near Shek Pik prison to a hillside near Tong Fuk. Summing up the evidence yesterday, Mr Banks said Chiu began unloading the lorry using the crane with a bucket attached. Long-term dumping in the area, however, had resulted in the land level rising. This, in effect, meant the crane was closer to the overhead powerline, now only 4.5 metres above the ground from the original 7.5 metres. When the extended jib touched the 33-kilovolt overhead line, Chiu suffered electrical burns. Mr Banks returned a verdict of accidental death.
