Airport Authority says control panel short circuit caused boarding bridge collapse

An airbridge collapsed at the Hong Kong International Airport on Monday night, but fortunately, no one was injured in the incident.

The airbridge, attached to the airport’s T1 Midfield Concourse, collapsed Between 8 pm and 9 pm last night, according to reports.

The Airport Authority said an initial investigation found that the air bridge fell because of a short circuit in its control panel due to water damage from the typhoon during the weekend.

The short circuit triggered a safety mechanism that “slowly descended” the bridge onto the ground, the authority said, adding that the bridge had since been restored to its normal position for further checking.

The authority said it has also conducted inspections on all other airbridges with similar designs overnight, and no issues have been flagged.

The authority noted that the airbridge in question - located at the airport’s T1 Midfield Concourse has been closed since the epidemic and has not affected the airport’s operations.