From correspondents in Hong Kong
July 7, 2004
A FIREMAN and a workman died in Hong Kong in what is believed to have been a deadly gas leak from a car parking lot drain, police said.
The two were declared dead in hospital after they and another five firemen were overcome by fumes released from a manhole. Firefighters were called to the scene in the eastern Shau Kei Wan district after one of the workmen fell into the manhole during drainage work in the car park basement. TV news images showed frantic scenes as ambulancemen tried to revive downed firemen. A police spokeswoman said investigators were still looking into what the gas was and how it was leaked into the air. Post-mortem examinations into what killed the two men were also ongoing, the spokeswoman said.