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Clifford Lo

Oscar Liu

A disconnected overhead electricity cable hit a moving minibus and two lamp posts, and triggered blackouts in 68 households after it fell on a busy road in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
Utility CLP Power apologised to the public for the rare repairs-related blunder that left people without electricity for about 1½ hours.
The cable collapsed onto Castle Peak Road near Au Tau Interchange in Yuen Long shortly before 12.30pm, according to police.
A force spokesman said a preliminary investigation revealed that staff from CLP were repairing the cable, between two electricity pylons and estimated to be 300 metres in length (984 feet), at the time.
“While conducting the repairs, the power line fell and hit two lamp posts and a minibus,” the spokesman said. “No casualties were reported.”
He said the minibus was later pulled over for inspection. Its driver, 67, and 10 passengers were unhurt.

A photo posted online shows the overhead cable stretching across a flyover, with one end attached to a nearby pylon.
In another online photo, a snapped lamp post can be seen on Castle Peak Road beneath the flyover.
CLP said a contractor was replacing cables in a 400kV power supply system in Yuen Long at 12.21pm.
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A nearby 11kV overhead cable was affected, triggering power outages in 68 households. The power was restored at about 2pm, the energy giant said.
The company added it had reported the case to authorities and apologised to the public for the inconvenience. CLP’s engineering team was investigating and taking appropriate follow-up actions.
The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department said it had requested CLP to promptly determine the cause of the accident and submit a report within four weeks.
“We will continue to closely monitor the situation with CLP and urge it to take appropriate improvement measures to prevent a recurrence of the incident,” a department spokesman said.
The only lane of the slip road leading from Castle Peak Road – Tam Mi to Castle Peak Road – Yuen Long, which was once closed due to obstacles on the street, reopened to all traffic in the afternoon, according to the Transport Department.
Part of the lanes of both directions of Castle Peak Road – Yuen Long near Kam Tin Road also reopened, it added.
Veteran electrical engineer Ho Wing-yip said he believed the power line fell after personnel unintentionally failed to secure the replaced cable properly.
A spokesman for the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers also urged CLP to launch a thorough investigation and a comprehensive review into the related work procedures and cable securing tools.
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Wilton Fok Wai-tung, principal lecturer for the electrical and electronic engineering department at the University of Hong Kong, said the incident could have resulted in fatalities or fire if the cable was live.
“But energised cables often come with protective devices,” Fok said. “When such a cable experiences an unexpected break or an open circuit, these devices can be automatically activated.
“It means the cable, which was originally energised, will disconnect immediately.”

In March last year, the electricity firm apologised after more than 100 residents were left trapped in lifts across parts of the city following a supply glitch, with police receiving numerous calls about a suspected explosion at a pylon near Kowloon Peak.
The blast reports centred on activity near Fei Ngo Shan, also known as Kowloon Peak, in Wong Tai Sin at around 11.30pm on March 16. Online pictures and videos showed an electricity pylon in flames on the hillside.
CLP, which supplies Kowloon and the New Territories, said its high-voltage system at Wong Tai Sin recorded several power dips from 11.26pm on March 16 to 12.06am.
In June 2022, about 160,000 households in northwestern Hong Kong were left without electricity for at least a few hours after a bridge carrying high-voltage CLP cables caught fire in Yuen Long. Classes at schools were suspended, while railway and hospital services were disrupted.
Investigations later revealed the blaze was likely to have been caused by a 30-year-old fluorescent light that caught fire inside the cable bridge. No fire detection or protection systems were installed in the structure.


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An overhead power line collapsed on a busy road on Tuesday. Photo: Facebook/Kawai Tang

The power line hit a minibus and two lamp posts after it collapsed. Photo: Facebook/Kawai Tang

The cable collapse triggered blackouts in 68 households. Photo: Facebook/Kawai Tang

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Repair work is carried out on the damaged cable. Photo: Dickson Lee

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CLP Power staff were repairing the overhead cable, estimated to be 300 metres in length, at the time
Cable collapsed onto Castle Peak Road in Yuen Long shortly before 12.30pm


CLP Power staff were repairing the overhead cable, estimated to be 300 metres in length, at the time.


Disconnected overhead power line collapses on minibus, 2 lamp posts on busy Hong Kong road, triggers blackouts in 68 houses

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}CLP Power staff were repairing the overhead cable, estimated to be 300 metres in length, at the time Cable collapsed onto Castle Peak Road in Yuen Long shortly before 12.30pm

CLP Power staff were repairing the overhead cable, estimated to be 300 metres in length, at the time

Cable collapsed onto Castle Peak Road in Yuen Long shortly before 12.30pm