Hong Kong police officers to face disciplinary hearing after allowing tear gas canisters to fall off their vehicle on Connaught Road in Central
- Passing car hits box of canisters and releases clouds of gas
- Officers raced to incident only to realise they were the cause
Three policemen who accidentally let tear gas canisters tumble off their vehicle onto a busy Hong Kong street and billow clouds of the chemical weapon when hit by a passing car, will face a disciplinary hearing, law enforcement sources said on Thursday.
The box broke open on impact and one of the canisters was hit by a passing Mercedes-Benz, triggering the release of the gas. Tear gas, classified as a chemical weapon, is commonly used for riot control.
The driver of the Mercedes stopped her car and fled to a safe distance. Emergency personnel were called in at 9.25pm when a pedestrian alerted police. Firefighters were also sent to the scene.
The section of road was closed before officers from the police’s ballistics division were called in and seized the box of riot-control canisters and ammunition from under the Mercedes, according to one source.