Are you sure it was a sniffer dog? Those are rare on the streets of HK. The dog I saw there was an Alsatian (German Shepherd) - they're for crowd control, not sniffing.
Are you sure it was a sniffer dog? Those are rare on the streets of HK. The dog I saw there was an Alsatian (German Shepherd) - they're for crowd control, not sniffing.
I agree with PDLM, Alsatians are not typically trained as sniffer dogs, usually Beagles are, just like those used at HK customs dept.
Alsatians are used for extra muscle and the visual deterent of, don't f with me lol.
Last edited by Skyhook; 31-10-2007 at 12:24 PM.
No, I don't know. I was only commenting on what the original poster said. I have seen a sniffer dog in Wan Chai. It looked like a Yorkshire Terrier and that was definitely not there for crowd control. The dog was led into Fenwicks but I am not sure if he came out with a Colombian girl.
True, but by 11 it was really quite busy, and tonight will be packed - yesterday was really just a dress rehearsal.
Yeah, the police will usually show up to go through crowd control drills a few days up to a week beforehand. The dogs are there so that a drunk LKFer doesn't get it into his head that he can take on a cop.
And no way I'm going near LKF tonight. Was there last year and it was most definitely *not* worth it.
I was there and no it wasn't. It wasn't a stampede either.
The issue was that they moved the countdown clock from its traditional location at Star Ferry up to LKF.
This brought a lot of onlookers to the countdown spectacle - meaning LKF was completely rammed with a lot of people that were there for the countdown and not the bars.
Then, as the countdown came to an end, a lot of revellers left the bars to see it adding to the crush.
Because of the (then) high steps next to the roads, the steep downward slope of the roads causing a funnel effect, it caused a big crush of people.
Hi Guys and girls.
I was there in LKF also.
At 11:50 I was on the junction of the two streets, helping some friends celebrate for a few minutes. There was beer and broken glass all over the ground - making the sloping bricks slippery - loads of silly string and I saw at least two fire extinguishers going off.
Clocked a mate up the street opposite BitPoint (no idea if it's still there) and I made my way uphill. Took two full minutes to go some 40 metres, the crowds were heaving. As I got to him it hit midnight, and it all went wrong.
There definately WAS a surge in the crowd; I weigh about 100kg and the pressure of the crowd picked me off my feet and tipped me downhill. My large and suddenly very strong mate picked me up (Thanks for that one Shainal). The surge passed and we all stood up, but could hear and see the massive pile of people heaped up just downhill from us.
I won't go into the gritty details of the next few minutes, or the ensuing hours, but it was about as rubbish as you could imagine.
As far as I'm concerned the whole thing was the result of too may people, the tilting geography of the two streets in LKF - especially where they meet - the countdown clock and the DJ stage, the wet brick paving, the steps down either side of the street and the crowd surge at midnight. Much of which HKNebi mentioned.
I only mention all this to make sure accounts are reasonably accurate. For what it's worth - although the police were almost useless and the camera crews getting in the way of rescue efforts - loads of people both expat and local really stepped up to the mark to try and get people to saftey, give first aid and run casualties down to the ambulances.
Hope you all have a great Xmas season and an enjoyable (and safe) New Year. No need to dwell and wallow on the events of that night, but if you're in LKF at the end of the year, have a drink for those who lost it there.