Man dies in Hong Kong after being hit by taxi thrown off the road in collision
Driver of one of the taxis involved in the crash arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving
A 56-year-old man died after a taxi involved in a collision flew off the road and crushed him against a shop shutter during Monday’s early hours.
A cabby was arrested on suspicion of causing the Yau Ma Tei accident, which also injured a taxi passenger.
At about 3am on Monday, two taxis were travelling along Nathan Road towards Mong Kok. When passing the junction with Kansu Street, one of the taxis – driven by a 23-year-old man, surnamed Cheng – hit the other, driven by a 67-year-old man surnamed Kong.
Kong’s taxi reportedly lost control and knocked down the 56-year-old man, surnamed Yau, who was on the pavement.
A photo posted by local media showed Yau trapped between the taxi, which had mounted the pavement, and a shop’s roller shutter.
Police said Yau injured the lower part of his body. He was unconscious when rushed to the nearby Queen Elizabeth Hospital, and was certified dead at 3.44am.
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Cheng was arrested for dangerous driving causing death. On Monday afternoon he was released on bail pending further investigations, but was required to report back to police in mid-July.
A 27-year-old passenger in the taxi that hit the dead man injured his hand and shoulder and was sent to Kwong Wah Hospital in Yau Ma Tei.
The passenger, surnamed Chong, told local media that Yau was unresponsive from the time people went to help him. He said he and other passers-by tried to move the taxi away from the shutter and off the victim before paramedics arrived.
Anyone with information about the incident was urged to contact police at +852 3661 9000 or 3661 9058.
According to police figures, 69 people died in 50 traffic accidents across the city in the first five months of this year, including a February bus crash in which 19 people were killed and more than 60 injured. Last year, 108 people died in 104 traffic accidents in the city.
