Fire crews used specialist equipment to free the man from under the truck, but he succumbed to his injuries an hour later in hospital

A 76-year-old man died after being crushed by a heavy truck as its driver navigated a busy North Point market street this afternoon.

According to police, the driver of the truck, Mr Kong, 51, was driving west along Marble Road and turned right into Shu Kuk Street, knocking down Mr Cheung who was crossing the road. Police were called to the scene at 2.37pm, with reports of a man trapped under the truck. Despite efforts of emergency services, Mr Cheung died in hospital about an hour later.

Photos of the scene show the truck possibly overloaded, with wooden boards shoring up the sides of the truck bed. Police arrested Kong for dangerous driving causing death.

A resident says the junction is dangerous, as there’s busy pedestrian traffic between two staggered sections of Marble Road, the westerly side being a pedestrianised market. “Pedestrians cross Shu Kuk Street, where traffic is often slow or stationary but sometimes cars or trucks rush to make the lights on Java Road. It’s easy to imagine a pedestrian getting hit, because the road often seems pretty forgiving… but sometimes it isn’t,” they said.

An average of one pedestrian a week was killed on Hong Kong roads in 2020, while an average of around nine per week suffered life-changing injuries due to road crashes.

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