Bus, Shop Inundated With Tear Gas

A KMB Bus heading to Lai Chi Kok was enveloped in a cloud of tear gas in Mong Kok late on Sunday evening, caught at the wrong time in the wrong place as police suddenly fired off multiple bursts of the noxious smoke during confrontations with protesters.

The entire bus had to be evacuated, and the driver was left stricken and unable to drive as the gas entered the vehicle, which was driving past Argyle Street in Mong Kok.

Passengers flooded off the bus, some covering their noses and mouths in obvious discomfort, to get away from the gas.

The driver, though, seemed unable to get out, burying his head in his hands.

Volunteer first-aid workers boarded and tried to help wash out his eyes, and put a gas mask on him in an attempt to relieve his discomfort. But he appeared to still be distressed, and put his head down on the dash to rest.

Ultimately, he was relieved by a colleague, who drove the bus away.

Police had fired the tear gas after some people threw objects at their van. The officers had been getting ready to leave, and the crowd had been jeering them.

After protesters started throwing objects at a van, officers got out, and without warning, fired off a series of tear gas canisters in the area – with one canister exploding near the heads of journalists who were reporting on the unrest.

Around two hours earlier, at 9pm tear gas was apparently shot right into a pharmacy – the only business in the vicinity that was still open.

The shop was filled with the white smoke. A man who was inside the store at the time felt unwell, and was taken to hospital after a volunteer first-aider helped him out.

A tear gas canister was left right on the shelves, next to boxes of vitamins.