A crew works on the scene where a water pipe burst on Wong Chuk Hang Road, in Southern District, Hong Kong, Aug 7, 2023. (FLORENCE LI / CHINA DAILY)

A burst water pipe caused extensive road subsidence to three eastbound lanes in Southern District during Monday morning’s rush hour, severely disrupting local traffic and affecting thousands of commuters.

The incident occurred near Yan's Tower on Wong Chuk Hang Road and prompted the closure of Wong Chuk Hang Road towards the Aberdeen Tunnel. Traffic heading towards Central, Wan Chai, and other areas is being diverted via Pok Fu Lam Road.

The Hong Kong Transport Department urged motorists to consider alternative routes like Pok Fu Lam Road and explore public transport options, including the MTR

Emergency repair work is currently underway. According to a worker at the site, the right and middle lanes of the road are expected to reopen before 6 am on Aug 8. The leftmost lane, which sustained the most damage, is expected to reopen before 6 am on Aug 9.

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Hong Kong Citybus has diverted or shortened 26 affected routes, with one route suspended. It also arranged most of the affected buses to choose Pok Fu Lam Road to go to the north of Hong Kong Island. Commuters and travelers are advised to stay updated on route changes through the Citybus app when taking a bus. 

The Hong Kong Transport Department urged motorists to consider alternative routes like Pok Fu Lam Road and explore public transport options, including the MTR. 

Commuters traveling from Aberdeen to Pok Fu Lam experienced significant delays. The incident also led to traffic jams on Pok Fu Lam Road, causing difficulties in transferring to the MTR. 

A crew works on the scene where a water pipe burst on Wong Chuk Hang Road, in Southern District, Hong Kong, Aug 7, 2023. (FLORENCE LI / CHINA DAILY)A crew works on the scene where a water pipe burst on Wong Chuk Hang Road, in Southern District, Hong Kong, Aug 7, 2023. (FLORENCE LI / CHINA DAILY)

A resident surnamed Chan, who lives in Southern District and works in the Aberdeen area, complained that the incident had affected her morning commute. 

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She suggested that more notices should be put up in bus stations or streets to remind the public about bus diversion information. Chan emphasized that relying solely on mobile phone messages for updates is impractical, due to the fact that people won’t be reading mobile messages all the time. 

Cars queue in a traffic jam on Wong Chuk Hang Road, in Southern District, Hong Kong, Aug 7, 2023. (FLORENCE LI / CHINA DAILY)

Cars queue in a traffic jam on Wong Chuk Hang Road, in Southern District, Hong Kong, Aug 7, 2023. (FLORENCE LI / CHINA DAILY)

She pointed out that transportation in the Southern District is relatively inconvenient and is easily affected by traffic accidents. Additionally, the lack of a subway on Pok Fu Lam Road further affected commuters getting to work. 

Mike Wong and Florence Li contributed to the story.