As Hong Kong saw floods, fallen trees, and six-meter high tides during the rare Typhoon 10 this morning, most citizens stayed home to avoid danger outdoors. For the unlucky residents of one apartment building in Hung Hom, however, that wasn’t quite good enough.
Earlier today, footage of a suspended working platform at Chatham Gate apartments swinging wildly in the strong winds of Typhoon Hato (à la Miley Cyrus in Wrecking Ball) was shared all over social media. The clips first surfaced on Facebook at around 9am, minutes before the T10 signal was hoisted.
In the most widely shared clip, the platform is seen smashing into four windows from apartments on the third to sixth floors. Objects from one of the affected apartments were filmed flying out of the broken window as the curtains were blown around dramatically by the wind.
It was unclear whether anyone was in the flats during the incident, but photos believed to be taken by the occupants appeared online in the afternoon, Apple Daily reports. In the pictures, the window frames were deformed, while the inside of the apartment was covered in shattered glass.
Oriental Daily says Hok Yuen Street was blocked as responding police and firefighters arrived at the scene to stop the platform from causing further damage. A resident of the building told Apple Daily that a yellow Porsche which was parked on the street below the building had been damaged by the platform.
Management company Shun Tak Properties Management Limited told HK01 that the platform had been safely placed on the third floor of the building prior to the typhoon, but one of the cables was damaged by the strong winds and resulted in it dangling precariously outside the apartments. The company has pledged to provide necessary assistance and maintenance to the affected units.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFAQNkWKxhQThe
The No. 10 Hurricane Signal was downgraded to a No. 8 Southeast Gale Signal at 2:10pm and then a No. 3 Strong Wind Signal at 5:10pm.
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