Radicals set fires on roads, force closure of MTR station
SOME radical demonstrators set fires on roads and at least one exit of the Mass Transit Railway in the central areas of Hong Kong yesterday afternoon, as prolonged protests continued to disrupt traffic and cause chaos for the third month.
Rioters smashed windows, obstructed escalators and vandalized facilities at the MTR Central station before starting the arson at one of the exits, forcing the closure of the station. They also built barricades with dismantled road railings, trash bins and other miscellaneous objects on streets in Central and Admiralty areas.
Huge smokes billowed into the sky before fire fighters came and extinguished the fire.
As the police carried out dispersal operations in Central and Admiralty districts, some demonstrators headed to Wan Chai and Causeway Bay, blocking carriageways in the areas and paralyzing traffic.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government’s Transport Department announced yesterday that several road sections on Hong Kong Island were temporarily blocked to all traffic, and the services of 18 bus routes were suspended and over 60 routes were truncated or diverted.
The MTR announced in the evening that Central and Wan Chai stations were temporarily closed because of an escalation of the situation.
The police said they had deployed tear gas and used appropriate force to disperse protesters in Causeway Bay.
The police appealed to everyone on site to leave immediately and condemned all violent acts by the radical demonstrators. Residents of the areas were advised to stay tuned to the latest situation and keep their windows shut and stay indoors.
Later last night, some radical protesters blocked carriageways in Mong Kok, Kowloon, by setting up barricades with trash bins and debris, paralyzing the traffic.
Some protesters hurled hard objects into Mong Kok police station, posing a safety threat to members of the public and police officers at scene.
The nearby Prince Edward and Mong Kok MTR stations were temporarily closed due to the violence.
The police warned the protesters to stop all illegal acts and leave immediately.
On Saturday, some radical protesters besieged Mong Kok Police Station and aimed laser beams at police officers, forcing the police station’s report room services to be suspended.
The HKSAR government said in a statement that facilities at MTR stations were vandalized and there were attempts to interrupt the operation of the airport on Saturday.
(Xinhua)