A firefighter succumbed in an accident at Mei Ying House in Shek Kip Mei Estate in November 2014. A simple case of gas leak turned into an unexpected death of Hong Kong fireman Leung Kwok-kei. This case imposed a lot of questions about the country's fire services guidelines, gears, and its emergency procedures over gas leakages.
The investigation about the tragic death of Leung ended on Wednesday, August 29. The Coroner's Court looked into the evidence submitted by different parties.
Some of the wrong issues seen at the event were the old helmets firefighters worn at the event. There were nine crew members brought to the hospital. One of them was Leung, who eventually died after 13 days of being in the intensive care unit.
The estate security guard Lui Ching-kuen and senior fireman Liu Yuen-man both testified there were not trained to identify gas leak through smell. "It's common sense acquired from experience," Liu said, per the South China Morning Post.
Other firefighters also testified they were not wearing "anti-flash hoods," which was part of the guidelines. They, too, didn't check "gas concentration readings" before Leung braved the flat, ordered the force of entry, and allowed his subordinates to enter the place without breathing apparatuses.
However, the coroner specifically pointed out their helmets as the "most dangerous." The protective headgear was made based on the 1989 British standards. It was so outdated three firefighters', Leung included, helmets were blown off during the operation. After the accident, all helmets got replaced in February 2015.
Department assistant director Kong Ping-lam also said the flat entrance was "the most vulnerable position." Leung was standing in a wrong position when the unexpected explosion occurred, so ended up being thrown in the air.
According to Yahoo News Singapore, a resident first reported the gas leak to the building's management around 8:20 in the morning. The administration then received another three calls. So, Lui checked the corridors from the ninth to the 11th floor.
They, then, saw the source of the leakage in flat 1110. Just when they tried to enter the room by force, an explosion occurred. A massive fire then went out and devoured the ceiling down to the corridor.
Leung took the blast's impact that thrown him from the flat's entrance against the wall in the corridor. He suffered second-degree burns, inhalation injuries, and multiple ribs and skull fractures. He also had different complications like pneumonia.
Leung died in December 2017 after at the age of 49. He had served Hong Kong's Fire Services Department for 29 years.
