Residents of Hong Kong battle debris in typhoon’s aftermath
HONG Kong commuters clambered over fa l len trees and piles of debris Monday in a battle to get to work, as t he workaholic cit y strove to get back to business after a devastating t y phoon.
Commuters crammed into stations to try to board infrequent trains after the rail system was slowed by damaged power lines. All buses were cancelled because many roads were blocked by falling trees.
Some residents tackled an obstacle course to get to their jobs, climbing over broken branches, uprooted trees and even train tracks. Schools were closed and a clean-up was in full swing but there was anger that city leader Carrie Lam had not announced an official day off for workers.
When asked why she had not done so, Lam told reporters it was up to employers to make that decision but they must not penalise workers who were late or could not make it.
Hong Kong resonated with the sound of saws and drills as workers tried to clear paths and roadways and fix damaged buildings, with many windows blown out in homes, office blocks and hotels, roofs torn off and fixtures including signs and lights hanging loose.
Awestruck workers gathered to take pictures of skyscrapers whose windows had been punched through.
One flight attendant stay ing with colleag ues in a harbourside hotel told AFP they hid in the bathroom to keep safe as windows smashed in their rooms and winds swept away t heir belongings.
In coastal areas, parkland and roadways were blanketed with rubbish and rocks washed inland after sea levels surged.
In the neighbourhood of Tseung Kwan O, which is packed with tower blocks and was rocked by the t yphoon, residents described their terror during the storm.
“I could feel our building swaying when the wind blew. Our family wanted to get down to the lobby but all the lifts were suspended,” said a 62-yearold who gave her name as Mrs Fu.
Villages hit
In the low-lying coastal village of Lei Yue Mun, famous for its seafood, residents young and old gingerly navigated rocks, glass, shells and branches.
The village, which is in sight of the city’s skyscrapers but remains a lowrise warren of lanes, was pounded by waves that flooded streets and homes.
Many residents were sweeping out muddy water from their houses Monday.
Furniture and appliances had been completely destroyed in the homes of some, including one resident who gave his name as Cheng.
Cheng said he had spent months putting his home back together after Typhoon Hato struck last year.
He told AFP he would prefer to move to a high-rise public housing block but waiting lists were too long.
“I’ll deal with this calmly,” he said. Some village residents said they had no choice but to abandon their homes before the storm hit, but others took the risk of remaining.
“Our place is newly renovated, i f we left we would lose ever y t hing,” said one resident who gave his name as Mr Ng. He had stayed to make his own flood barriers from wood and sandbags and had scooped out water as it washed in.
Residents said large breakwaters had been installed along the coastline earlier this year to protect against flooding and some homes were given metal flood shields for their doors.
With fears that storms will worsen due to climate change, it is seafront villages like those at Lei Yue Mun that could bear the brunt, said Edward Ng, professor of architecture at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
“Because of sea levels rising and bigger storms coming, these are the areas that are tremendously vulnerable,” he said.