An investigation began on Tuesday into a freak tornado that struck Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok International airport, overturning a delivery vehicle on the airport’s cargo apron.
The mini-twister struck 2km south of the control tower on Monday afternoon, injuring the van driver and spilling fuel over a large area.
No flights were affected by the tornado, the second to hit the new airport, which opened in 1998, in the space of two years. A weaker tornado was recorded in May 2002.
A spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Department said on Tuesday that the Airport Authority has been asked to investigate the incident, which reportedly produced a small area of typhoon-strength winds.
Chek Lap Kok airport, on an island west of Hong Kong, is flanked by high mountains on one side and concerns have been expressed in the past that its geography exposes it to the risk of windshear.
The pilot of a China Airlines plane that flipped over when it landed at Chek Lap Kok during Typhoon Sam in August 1999 blamed a sudden change of wind direction seconds before he touched down.
Three people were killed and 200 others were injured in the accident.
A report into the crash, which has been challenged by the airline, blamed the pilot for failing to control the rate of descent of the MD-11 on his final approach to the airport. — Sapa-DPA