A footbridge in North Point that was home to a group of street sleepers before a fire last year will be demolished, government documents submitted to the Eastern District Council Tuesday stated.
Following a review of pedestrian flow and traffic in the vicinity of the Tong Shui Road footbridge, the Transport Department said existing road crossings are sufficient, and that it would be best to tear down the structure, Ming Pao reported.
The footbridge was scorched in a fire last April. Street sleepers living on the bridge evacuated in time, but the blaze—which engulfed the bridge and sent plumes of thick smoke into the air—left furniture and other belongings burnt.
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Nobody was injured in the fire. ImpactHK, an NGO supporting Hong Kong’s street sleepers, said in a post the morning of the fire that volunteers were “serving the homeless on [the] footbridge just last night.”
Police classified the blaze as an arson case.
The footbridge, which was completed in 1985, connects Chun Yeung Street—where the tram terminus is—to the King’s Road thoroughfare. It has been closed off since the fire.
According to the government documents, the footbridge will take two years to demolish. Authorities will be in touch with the tram company to minimize disruptions to tram operations.
