HK protesters paralyze traffic for fifth straight day

HONG KONG – Anti-government protesters paralyzed parts of Hong Kong for a fifth day on Friday, forcing schools to close and blocking some main roads, as radicals carried out fresh round of attacks across the territory and university students barricaded campuses.

To make the situation worse, protesters planned to launch city-wide obstructions at 3:30 pm to disrupt employees' journeys home, according to an online poster.

Due to continued road blockages and damage to road facilities by radicals, the city's road-based transport services have been seriously affected on Friday morning, with the New Territories East, the New Territories West and Kowloon bearing the brunt, according to a statement issued by the Transport Department on Friday.

Photos taken by China Daily reporters showed piles of bricks stacked up to waist height and scattered debris occupying major roads in different districts, forcing most buses to divert or suspend services.

Tolo Highway partially reopens

The Tolo Highway, a major traffic artery in the New Territories, partially reopened around noon.

The carriageway near the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has been blocked since Tuesday evening as protesters threw objects from a bridge onto the highway.

Police said they were making immense effort to work with other government departments to remove the debris in a bid to resume normal traffic as soon as possible.

Traffic on both sides of Cross-Harbour Tunnel, the busiest among the three tunnels linking Kowloon and Hong Kong Island, remained closed.

Metro services limited

Continuous vandalism by radicals severely disrupted metro services in the financial hub. Only limited services could be provided by seven metro lines.

Service of the entire East Rail Line linking the city with Shenzhen was shut for hours Friday morning as rioters trespassed on threw gasoline bombs onto railway tracks. Service between Hung Hom and Fo Tan stations gradually resumed from around 10 am.

The MTR Corp strongly condemned the rioters' unlawful conducts, saying that they might constitute severe safety threats to passengers and MTR staff. In a statement, the company said it had reported the cases to the police.

Firemen's work obstructed

The Fire Services Department said recent protests had severely affected its staff from carrying out their duties, especially in Tsim Tung and Kowloon Tong.

In a statement, the department said the protesters have put residents' lives at risk by obstructing emergency services. It added that its staff have tried their utmost efforts to remove barricades set up by protesters.

On Friday morning, groups of local residents voluntarily cleared debris and roadblocks set up by protesters in Mong Kok, Tin Shui Wai and Sai Wan Ho, hoping to clear the roads to allow normal traffic before the start of the morning rush hours.