A 22-year-old local university student has died from his injuries after falling from a car park last Sunday. The reason for his fall remains unclear.
Chow Tsz-lok, a second-year student at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), suffered a cardiac arrest on Friday and died at 8:09am, a hospital official confirmed.
Last Sunday, protesters gathered in Tseung Kwan O following rumours that a police officer was getting married at the Crowne Plaza hotel. At around 1am, police fired tear gas to disperse them.
Chow fell from the Sheung Tak car park’s third floor onto the second floor. He was rushed to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Jordan unconscious where he remained in critical condition for the rest of the week.
The police stood accused of blocking and delaying paramedics from taking the student to hospital, which they denied. They also denied officers pushed Chow.
Flowers, origami cranes and Post-It Notes containing messages of support were left in a section of the intensive care unit of the hospital where Chow was being treated.
Some of the notes read “I hope you will recover,” “Hong Kong people are with you. Never give up,” and “I hope you will punish those who harmed you in heaven.”
HKUST President Wei Shyy cried upon hearing confirmation of Chow’s death on the second day of the university’s graduation ceremonies on Friday. He asked attendees to stand up and observe a moment of silence.
Link Real Estate Investment Trust – which owns the car park – released security camera footage of the scene on Wednesday. However, the videos did not capture the moment when Chow fell.
HKUST student union interim president Johnny Lai told reporters at Queen Elizabeth Hospital that Chow’s family thanked the public’s support for Chow.
Lai said HKUST students will observe a five-minute silence at the university plaza at 1pm to mourn Chow and urged the public to do the same. The student union will hold a candlelight vigil at 6pm, he said.
“I hope the [HKUST] president will use all his powers to find out who was responsible for blocking the ambulances [from rescuing Chow],” he said. “There needs to be an investigation into the truth.”
