Taxi in Hong Kong hangs over 5-meter-deep abyss after accident; pedestrian falls onto the street below

The taxi was in a dangerous balance: its front half was hanging over Ice House Street and its rear wheels no longer had any grip on the ground.

According to police, the taxi was travelling east on Lower Albert Road when it struck a pedestrian, a railing and the curb after the driver lost control of his vehicle.

Police said the 28-year-old foreigner fell five metres from Lower Albert Road onto Ice House Street, injuring her right leg.

In addition, debris fell onto the road below and hit another taxi, driven by a 61-year-old man.

Emergency services rushed to the scene and the 44-year-old taxi driver and the woman were taken to Queen Mary Hospital in Pok Fu Lam. The driver passed a breathalyzer test and was detained for questioning.

Separately, three motorists were injured in Sham Shui Po when a private car and a taxi collided at an intersection, hitting a parked vehicle.

Police said they received a report at around 2:30 p.m. that a private car traveling north on Yu Chau Street collided with a taxi traveling east on Maple Street at the intersection.

The private vehicle then collided with another car parked on Yu Chau Street.

Three men aged between 29 and 62 were admitted to the Caritas Medical Centre in Sham Shui Po with chest and shoulder pain and headaches.

At the time of the first accident, heavy rains hit the city while a yellow rainstorm warning was issued. The warning signal means that heavy rain of 30 mm per hour has fallen or is expected.

Sunday’s accidents were the latest involving taxis.

On May 15, a 52-year-old taxi driver surnamed Yeung died after he fainted at the wheel and crashed into a curb in Tuen Mun.

The Transport and Logistics Bureau said last week that the number of taxi accidents rose 26 percent to 4,585 last year, up from 3,632 accidents in 2022 and 4,153 in 2021.