Hogging the limelight: young wild boar pigs out in cross-harbour adventure, boarding two Hong Kong trains
- Plucky piglet negotiates Friday rush hour and escapes the clutches of MTR staff to cross from Hong Kong Island to New Territories
- The youngster starts first leg of journey at Quarry Bay station, alights at North Point interchange to take the Tseung Kwan O line over the water
A young wild boar showed pig-headed determination on Friday to cross Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour, boarding two separate MTR trains and giving railway staff the runaround to complete the journey to the New Territories.
The piglet passenger strayed into Quarry Bay MTR station at 3.55pm before boarding an Island line service – triggering farcical scenes as train workers and animal welfare officers pursued the porcine punk through carriages and across platforms, to the delight and intrigue of commuters.
Multiple attempts by MTR staff to catch the juvenile were unsuccessful, allowing the animal to alight at the North Point interchange and board another train heading across the water.
The rail operator confirmed the piglet caught the Po Lam-bound service on the Tseung Kwan O line.
The train was diverted to the depot in Tseung Kwan O, where officers from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) were waiting to collect the animal.
Photographs and videos circulated online showed the boar running loose on a train carriage. The creature even took a rest to plonk itself on the train’s priority seats.
An AFCD spokesman said the young animal suffered no ill effects from the incident and had been released back into a country park.
The MTR said the piglet had caused little disruption to services, adding no staff were injured.
